A hidden appearance
by mariaC
Summary: She has always searched for love, for someone to look at her. But sometimes dreams don't turn out the way you want to, and now she finds herself somewhere she has never wanted to be. Doesn't follow the movie.
1. Chapter 1

**That's me**

Hello. I'm the girl everyone hates.

Well, they did say I should write down the first thing that popped up in my head in this diary.

But perhaps I should explain some things to you first.

Alright, let's start at the beginning. My name is Rachel, I'm 16 years old, love walking across the beach in the moonlight, you get the picture.

As you might have guessed, I don't like introductions. Probably because no one ever asked me to introduce myself. Why not, you might wonder. Well, that question is simple to answer. Who cares about a small, plain girl in the room when she has four hot boys standing beside her?

Right: No one. You just won a microwave.

So that leads us to the next question: Who are the four hot boys?

If you ask me that in person, I might just slap you in the face. Honestly, I hate that question. But since you're not really here, and I'm actually just talking to myself, only writing it down because it doesn't look that crazy that way, I'll answer anyway.

Meet my big brother and his three friends.

Question number three, the hardest one yet: Why does everyone hate me?

Well, where do I start? Right, my parents.

My father is almost 39 years old, but he already looks like he's 50. There are only two people in the world he cares about, my mother and my brother.

The reason he doesn't like me is very simple to explain: I'm a girl.

You see, I was the first girl to be born in my family for over three hundred years. In those three hundred years predicting the gender and numbers of children had been very easy in our family: You get one child and it'll be a boy.

Sort of boring, don't you think?

So when my mom got pregnant for the second time, everyone was shocked. Well, with everyone I mean my family and the three other families, who have the same kind of originality regarding their children.

They all figured it'd be a miscarriage, but they were disappointed. In 1989, at June the first, a girl was born, surprising everyone within the four families.

And what can a father do with a girl? For my father, that question was easy to answer: Nothing. He taught my brother how to ride a bike, that eventually changed into a motorcycle. But girls wasn't interested in such things, according to him at least, so he never bothered to ask me if I wanted to learn it.

So I guess that explains why my father doesn't like me: He already has a son, and that's all he really needs. To him, I'm useless.

So then comes my mother, or, as I prefer, the woman who gave birth to me. She'll turn 38 in three months.

To her, I'm just the girl who can't do anything right. Despite the facts I get straight A's and follow the same classes as my brother, even though I'm 19 months younger then him, to her I'm still walking in the shadow of my big brother, who might not get great grades, but does defeat everyone in the water. Well, almost everyone. His friends are still faster then him.

I once played in the school's musical, but she never saw that one. Beside the fact that I told her that I played the lead in it (which really was the truth, BTW, and not just a way to get her to the show), she still thought that a trip to Hawaii was more important and she left a few hours before the show started. Something I didn't hear until she texted me a few minutes before I had to enter the stage for the final song.

I still remember the text message.

_Plain leaves in five minutes. Dinners is in the fridge, you cook. CU in one week._

Guess that tells you enough about the love of my mother, right? Though, I am thankful she asked me to cook. My brother could barely make a sandwich.

Ah, my brother. For some reason, I still see him as one my favourite persons in the world.

My brother turns 18 in one month. He drives a Ducati, which he's practically in love with, something he got from our dad, has three best friends, one beautiful girlfriend, and is one of the most popular people in the school.

The only thing I can tell you about him beside the general information is that his favourite meal is lasagne. And I only know that one because he always asks me to make it for him.

Sometimes he takes me to a party. That's real nice of him.

Too bad it's only because one of his friends needs a girl to keep the other girls away. So the party's I go to always go the same.

Step 1: Pretend to be the girlfriend of ….. (enter name)

Step 2: Ignore the glares of the jealous girls.

Step 3: Watch as your 'boyfriend' suddenly finds a girl he likes and starts flirting with her.

Step 4: Stand alone in a crowed of people that are older then you.

Step 5: Realise that your brother has already left and forgot to take you home with him.

O yeah, I _love _parties.

But you know what the real problem is? My family doesn't even realise what they're doing. If they did realise, I could just scream at them, maybe run away. But now, there's nothing I can do about it. I tried talking to them about it, but they never really listened so I just gave up after a while.

So that's my family. Let's continue with the friends.

O, forgot. I don't have them.

Why not? Real simple. The girls hate me because they think I'm a whore. If you wonder where they got that idea, go back to my party schedule. I'm sure that explains everything.

And the boys, well, like a said before: Who would care about a little, plain girl that's obviously either younger or in a higher grade then you.

I wasn't popular, so there was simply no reason for people to talk to me.

So I guess that is my life: Trying to survive high school while helping my big brother with everything I can help with.

Welcome to the live of Rachel Parry.

****

_I've become so numb I can't feel you there  
Become so tired so much more aware  
I'm becoming this all I want to do  
Is be more like me and be less like you_

I listened to one of my favourite songs, when suddenly my door was thrown open. I didn't need to check who it was, since there was only one person in the world who would even think about entering my room.

Forgive me for being so pessimistic.

Anyway, I grabbed the remote of my stereo and turned it off. After that I simply looked at my big brother, knowing he didn't need a question to tell me what he wanted.

"There's a party at the Dells tonight. We're leaving at 8." Pogue stated before exiting my room again. I rolled my, stood up from my bed, closed the door and returned to my previous position. The music continued.

A quarter past eight and I was sitting on the stairs, waiting for my brother. I had simply pulled out a pair of jeans and a shirt, not really checking whether it matched or not. I couldn't care less.

Suddenly my brother stormed down the stairs, barely avoiding me. He didn't say anything as he walked through the front door and I quickly ran after him, closing the door behind me. Caleb, my brother's best friend, was waiting in his mustang. We quickly stepped in the car, I in the back, my brother in the front, and my brother and Caleb greeted each other. After that Caleb gave me a quick nod through his rear-view mirror, and I smiled to him.

After that he drove away.

At nine o'clock, the last one of Pogue's friends arrived. Reid Garwin, the player of Ipswich. I really didn't like him, which had something to do with the fact that he had stolen my first kiss from me for a dare, even after I told him I didn't want it. My brother and his other two friends had been there as well. Caleb had just laughed, while Tyler had told Reid to stop it. Of course, Reid hadn't listened, but still it had got him in my favourite person top 2.

Not that I know why he'd want to be in there, but anyway.

"What's up, fellas?" Caleb rolled his eyes at Reid, as he normally did. Reid was just the kind of person to make people do those kind of things.

Tyler, Reid's best friend, was less annoyed. But only slightly.

"Where were you? I stopped by to give you a lift."

Reid shrugged.

"Had things to do. How's the party?" And that was when I zoned out, knowing no one was going to say anything special anymore. One of the four boys would lie, saying they just arrived and after that they would all prove they were boys by doing something stupid.

And again, I was right.

Reid jumped of the cliff.

"Reid!" Caleb yelled angry. I simply rolled my eyes. Pogue laughed.

"Come on, Caleb, it's not like it's gonna kill us. Yet." He said grinning, ever the cool guy. After that he jumped down too. Caleb rolled his eyes and jumped after his two friends.

"Rachel." I looked up, surprised. Tyler held his hand out to me and my eyes widened.

Tyler laughed when he saw the fear in my eyes.

"Come on, I wont let you fall!" He promised. I wondered why he didn't just jump, like he usually did. Most of the time, he was the first one to follow Reid. But then again, who was I to complain? Most of the time, I was the one who could walk the whole way down because none of them felt like taking me.

So I swallowed and took Tyler's hand. He pulled me close and I hid my face in his chest as he jumped.

And maybe no is the time to explain that my brother and his friends weren't suicidal, or at least, not in that way. You see, eventually these sort of things will kill them, as Pogue had stated before. They are witches. They had been able to use magic since their thirteenth birthday. At their eighteenth birthday, they ascended, becoming even more powerful. But the power is addictive and the more they use, the more they age. So that also explains why my father looks so much older then he is.

And then my feet touched the ground again and my eyes fell on the party in front of me.

Everyone was either dancing, talking or throwing up.

Just another party in Ipswich.

**So here's my newest story. I actually didn't want to start this story before I finished the other one, but I just had to get it out of my head. Last night, I lay awake until three AM because my brain was determined to figure out who Rachel was. ****The rest of me wasn't to happy about that.**

**So I hope you like it, and please tell me what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Unexpected confidence**

**

* * *

**

I followed the boys through the crowd. Since they were the sons of Ipswich, they never had to worry about someone walking in their way.

I, however, did. It didn't take me very long before I lost the boys. Well, lost isn't the right word, I guess. It's hard to loos a son of Ipswich, since it seems like they have a personal light following them wherever they go to make sure everyone notices them.

So let me rephrase that sentence: It didn't take me very long before I was separated from them. And since they didn't bother to wait for me, I shouldn't bother trying to catch up with them.

You can call me pessimistic.

Suddenly I collided with someone.

"Hey! Watch it!" I told him in my bitchy voice.

Now, there are two reactions possible for these occasions.

Number 1: The other persons says he's sorry, and we both walk on.

Number 2: He says I should watch it, we glare at each other and then walk on.

Apparently, he couldn't decide.

"Well, I'm sorry. But it was just as much your fault as mine." I simply stared at him, lifting one eyebrow. He grinned at me. Not in a mean way, like most people did, but as if he just made a joke and expected me to laugh.

"Do you want to dance?" He asked, and before I realised what I was doing, I nodded. He took my hand and pulled me towards a less crowded spot, where dancing was slightly easier.

"So, what's your name?" He asked me. I blinked. That was new.

"Rachel." I answered, suddenly realising I was smiling.

"Cool name. I'm Simon. Simon Nelson." He told me. I nodded, not sure what else to do. I tried to think of something, anything, to say, but I couldn't think of anything.

"You go school here?" He wondered, and I quickly nodded, thankful that he knew how to hold a conversation.

"Yeah, I go to Spencer's."

"Really? Wow, you didn't seem like one of those rich people."

"Uh… Thanks?" He laughed, and then I laughed too.

"So where do you go to school?" I asked him, silently congratulating myself. I said something! Go Rachel!

Alright, so maybe those people who called me crazy had a point.

"I go to public in Boston. But when we heard there was gonna be a party here, we decided to come." I nodded, until I realised something.

"We?" Please, don't let it be some super hot girlfriend who hates everyone who dances with her boyfriend.

"Yeah, I brought my twin, Max, and my little brother, Mark. A friend of us is new in Spencer and told us about the party, so we decided to come and help her. Are you here alone?"

I shook my head. "Nah, my big brother dragged me along. One of his friends needed a girl on his arm, and he volunteered me."

"That sucks. So where are they now, then?" I quickly searched the crowd, and quickly found them. Great, Aaron Abbott was with them. That wouldn't end well.

I nodded towards them.

"There. Those four boys and the two girls. The ones that are almost fighting with that other group."

Simon followed my eyes and his eyes widened when he saw them.

"The ones with Sarah?" I shrugged.

"Who's Sarah?"

"My friend, the one who's new in Spencer. Sarah Wenham."

I looked at my brother's group and realised I had indeed never seen the blond girl before.

"The blond one?" He nodded.

It wasn't so hard to predict the way this was going to go. First, he'd walk towards Sarah and ask her about her new friends. Then, he'd be impressed by the sons of Ipswich. And last but not least: He'd forget all about my existence.

Trust me, I've seen it happen before.

But he simply turned back to me and smiled.

"Sarah used to date my twin. They broke up a few months ago." I nodded, not sure how to react. Suddenly the music stopped.

"Guys! Guys! Gill just called! Said he saw three cop cars heading this way on Old Down Road!"

I cursed and turned towards Simon.

"Nice to meet you, but I really have to go." I already started running before I had finished my sentence.

"Hey!" I looked to my right and my eyes widened. Simon grinned at me.

"My car's that way. But relax, I mean, it's not like your brother's gonna leave you here, right?"

My right eyebrow rose and his eyes widened.

"You serious?" I rolled my eyes and continues running.

Just in time to see Tyler's hummer leave.

"Shit!"

"Hey!" I turned around and, again, faced Simon. He smiled at me.

"Need a ride?" For a second I remembered the thing all our teachers crammed in our heads when we were little.

_Never, ever, step in the car with a stranger._

Then I remembered my brother's lesson when he took me to my first party.

_Never, ever, get caught by cop._

My decision was made.

"Thanks!"

He leaded me towards his car and stepped in the passengers seat.

Now, I would describe it to you, but unfortunately for you my knowledge of cars stops with 'it was a red Toyota'. So I hope that's enough for you.

I could, however, tell you that my brother would never, ever, set a foot in a car like this one. I really couldn't care less.

I stepped in the back, and as soon as I had closed the door behind me, the driver started to race. The boy who sat beside me smiled at me.

"Hi." He said. "I'm Mark."

Before I could respond, the boy who drove turned around and smiled at me as well.

"And I'm Max."

I tried to smile at him, I really did, but that is a bit hard when someone is driving 80 m/ph in a forest while he is looking at you.

Simon punched his brother, which really didn't help my fear.

"Keep your eyes of the lady and on the road, bro!" The three boys laughed and as soon as Max followed his brother's advice, I smiled as well.

"I'm Rachel." I told them.

"So how does such a pretty lady as yourself get in a humble car like ours?" Mark asked, smiling innocently. He was starting to creep me out.

His two brothers rolled their eyes at each other, and then Simon turned around.

"One: Stop flirting with her. Two: If you have to flirt, do it in such a way that you don't creep her out. Three: This isn't our car. It's the car of Max and I."

Then he turned to me.

"Sorry about my _little_ brother. We're still not sure what's wrong with him."

I laughed softly, while Mark glared at his brothers comment.

"I'm not your _little _brother!"I'm bigger then you!"

Simon grinned. "Your still younger!"

I laughed along with Simon and Max while Mark was grumbling beside me. Simon turned to me again.

"But did your brother seriously left without you? After he dragged you here? I mean, I've always wanted to do that to Mark, but I've never actually done that! My parents would kill us!"

I shrugged.

"It's simple. He just forgets I'm there once he doesn't need me anymore. And in my parents eyes, he's the perfect one. So they probably wouldn't even listen to me."

Max glanced at me, before returning his eyes to the road.

"So how do you get home then? I mean, when there isn't a noble knight to save you." We all laughed.

"I usually walk home." I really tried to sound as if I didn't care, but I wasn't that good at acting.

I didn't fool them, so I looked out of the window to avoid their looks of pity.

"Where do you live?" I looked up surprised. After my previous story, it had been quiet, and Max' question surprised me.

He smiled at me through his rear mirror. Luckily, he had slowed down a bit when he was certain the cops weren't following us.

"So we can take you home." He explained.

I looked outside again and realised we were close to my house already. If I would follow the path that would appear on our right in a few miles, I'd be home within the hour.

"That's okay." I said. "If you let me out here, I'll run the last part."

Simon rolled his eyes.

"What way would you go then?" He asked. I pointed towards the path, that came closer every second. But when we got there, Max didn't stop. Instead, he took the turn. My eyes widened in surprise again. I wanted to object, to say that I could get home by myself. But none of them looked like he'd really care about my complains, so I kept my mouth shut.

Mark grinned at me again, and this time I smiled back.

A few minutes later we reached my house. The three boys openly stared at it.

"Fuck." Mark finally said. "That's the size of our entire neighbourhood!"

I blushed.

"Thanks for the ride." I smiled at them before opening my door and stepping out of the car.

"Rachel!" I turned around, wondering what Simon had to say.

"There's a party in Boston tomorrow. Do you want to come?" I smiled.

"Sure. What time?"

"We'll pick you up at seven, okay?" I nodded, and then suddenly a wave of confidence hit me.

"Give me your phone." I told him. He grinned and leaned out of his window to hand it to me. I quickly entered my number and gave it back.

"Call me!" I told him before turning around and walking to my house. Behind me I heard the boys cheering, and I laughed.

* * *

"Where have you been!" Unfortunately for me, my parents weren't as happy as I was. I sighed softly and listened as they told me their lies.

"Do you have any idea how worried we were?"

"You simply left a party with a boy and you didn't even tell your brother?"

"You're not allowed to go out this month, you hear me? And you go up right now and apologize to your brother!"

Of course, with parents it never is that simple. They continued screaming at me, until I sighed again, a bit louder this time.

"Are you even listening to us?" My mother screeched. I winced and brought my hands up to my ears.

"Not really." I answered, without thinking. The confidence Simon, Max and Mark had given me hadn't really worn out, apparently.

Before I realised what was happening, my fathers hand flew out and collided with my cheek. I fell to the ground. My hand covered my cheek while tears formed in my eyes. Then I looked up, staring right in the eyes of the people who called themselves my 'parents'. They looked shocked, both of them. My father opened up his mouth to apologize, like he did last time. And the time before. And the time there for. Etcetera.

But this time, I wouldn't listen. I jumped up and tried to run past them. But my fathers hand closed around my wrist and pulled my roughly back to him.

"Rachel…" he started, but I didn't let him finish his sentence.

"Let me go!" I tried to sound angry, but instead it came out like I was begging him.

"Rachel, we're so sorry." My mom told me. I shook my head.

"You're not sorry." I told them. After that I pulled my wrist away from my father and ran upstairs. I locked the door behind me and fell down on my bed, crying myself to sleep.

* * *

**And here's the next chapter. **

**I want to thank every one who put my on story or author alert. But I do want to ask you to review. How else am I going to know if you like this story? Criticism is welcome, but please… be nice.**


	3. Chapter 3

"Hello?"

"Hey, Rachel?"

"Yeah."

"This is Simon."

"Oh! Sorry, I didn't recognize your voice."

"No problem, I should have said my name. Anyway, you're still coming with us tonight, aren't you?"

"Well…I'm sort off grounded, actually."

"Damn it! Why?"

"Worried my brother by leaving him at a party and riding home with someone else."

"Huh? Wait, your talking about yesterday?"

"Score! You've won a microwave!"

"But your brother left _you_!"

"No! Really? Thank you Sherlock!"

"You can drop the sarcasm now."

"Can't. It's the biggest part of me."

"Good to know."

"Figured I should warn you. Anyway, unless your scared off by now, if you wait at the turn to our house, I'll meet you there in two hours, alright?"

"You're going to sneak out? Cool!"

"I know, right? I mean, nice to know that fugly tree in our backyard is good for something."

"I'll see you in later, alright? And don't break anything!"

"Damn! I just thought of a plan to finally get rid of that vase in the hallway!"

"See ya, Rachel!"

"Bye!"

I hung up my phone with a smile on her face. That had been the first time in five years someone beside my brother had called me on my phone. Quickly I jumped up and ran toward my wardrobe.

"Rachel!"

I looked away from the mirror, where I had been working on my hair, towards the door where my brother stood.

He grinned. "Good news. We're going to Nicky's tonight, and mom said you could come."

I froze. I hadn't expected that to happen. I hated to say no to him, even though I knew that I didn't owe him anything. He had never done anything for me, and still I did everything he asked of me.

But he was my brother, and I guess that there was a part of me that still hoped he'd love me the way I loved him, if I would just play the perfect little sister.

But I refused to cancel my plans with the Nelsons, the first people who talked to me instead of to Pogue Parry's little sister.

So I wouldn't go to Nicky's with him. But then the next problem appeared:

_How can I refuse him without telling him about my plans for tonight?_

I knew that he wouldn't ever let me go with Simon, Max and Mark. Deep inside, I also knew that it might not be the greatest idea to go out with someone you've known for less then twenty-four hours.

But I liked Simon and his brothers. They were nice to me. And I wanted to go with them.

"Rachel?" My brother disrupted my thoughts. I quickly shook myself awake.

"Sorry Pogue, I don't feel like going tonight." I told him, looking him straight in the eye.

He looked suspicious. "So what are you getting ready for?"

"Nothing!" I called out too fast. Pogue lifted an eyebrow.

"So you've just decided to put on some makeup, do your hair and lay your nicest clothes on the bed."

My eyes flew towards the outfit.

"You think those are my nicest clothes?" I asked him relieved. After all, I had been searching for those clothes for over an hour.

Pogue stared at me, his eyes filled with unbelief.

"Whatever." He then said, as he exited my room. "I'm leaving. Have fun here, all alone in the house."

He made the last part sound like it was meant to scare me, obviously forgetting all the times I had been alone her, while he had a movie night with his friends.

"Have fun!" I told him, while closing and locking the door behind him.

As soon as I heard the front door slam close, I sighed in relief.

He was gone. I was safe to go.

I quickly finished my hair, that I had put in a French braid, and pulled on my outfit.

My best outfit existed of a dark jegging, a red button-up blouse, that I tied above my belly button, a black leather jacket, and my black sneakers.

When I was done, I looked in the mirror and was quite content with the way I looked. I grinned at myself, and opened my window.

After I climbed on the window-sill, I focused on the huge oak tree. A few branches hung right in front of my window, so it wasn't very hard to get into the tree.

The problem was getting out, and for that solution I had my brother to thank.

You see, when Pogue and his friends were nine years old, they decided to start a club. And of course, they needed a clubhouse.

So the four boys, with help from their fathers, build a beautiful clubhouse in our tree. And even though they hadn't been there since they were eleven, in other words; since they discovered swimming, they still kept a rope there, that hung just outside the house, and went all the way to the ground. In other words, it was a perfect getaway for me.

As soon as my feet touched the ground, I started to run. I had only twenty minutes left, so I had to hurry.

When I arrived at the arranged place, no one was there. I waited a few minutes, but when still no one came, I started to worry.

Then my phone rang.

"Hello?" I asked cranky.

"Rachel? Hey, it's Max."

"Please tell me you're not cancelling."

"Only in my worst nightmares." He replied smoothly. "The traffic was terrible, so we'll be there in a few minutes, alright?"

I smiled relieved.

"That's okay. I'll see you then!"

Max hung up and I leaned against a tree, fully prepared to wait for a while.

Suddenly I gasped. A yellow Ducati was driving straight to our house.

No problem, right? Just one: My brother owned a yellow Ducati. I moaned, and hid behind a few trees, praying that Pogue hadn't seen me.

He kept driving.

And that was when I ran out of luck. A red Toyota pulled over.

"Rachel! Come on, let's go!"

The Ducati stopped, and the motorcyclist turned around. I sprinted towards the car, jumped in and slammed the door close.

"GO! GO!" I called out, being overly dramatic as usual. "I think I'm being followed."

The three boys laughed, as Simon, today's driver, raced away. Apparently, he was just as much as a speed junky as his brother.

As I said, I was out of luck.

"What are you talking about?" Mark asked, still laughing.

"You saw that motorcyclist? That was my brother."

Mark shrugged. "So what's the problem? And how the hell did he get such a cool ride?"

I rolled my eyes, but I was still grinning, still feeling the adrenaline of my nearly-capture.

"Second question: My parents. First question: I'm grounded, so he expects me to sit in my room feeling sorry for myself."

"Good point." Mark admitted. "And I wish I had parents like yours."

My grin disappeared.

"Trust me. You don't." I told him in my graveyard voice, as I looked out of the window again.

Max turned on the music, trying to lighten the mood.

* * *

An hour later, we arrived at the party. It was defiantly not what I was used to. The party's Pogue dragged me to where either near the Dells, or in the house of one of his friends.

This party was in a shed. They had an awesome sound system, and they had just enough lights to make it work, but it still wasn't the same as the rich party's.

In other words, I loved it.

"Come on, let's dance!" Simon laughed as he grabbed my hand and pulled me to the dance floor.

So here you learn something new about me: I love dancing.

Remember how I told you I played the lead in a musical?

Well, our school thought it was important for students to follow at least one artistic lesson, and one sport lesson. So I picked singing and dancing, because I loved music. Still do. So for the last six years I followed my dancing and singing classes. Trust me, after that, everyone can dance.

So I laughed as I danced with Simon. And Max. And Mark. And a few other boys. You get the picture.

And then Simon grabbed my hand, pulling me along as he pushed himself through the crowd. Apparently everyone suddenly wanted to get out, so I didn't have to ask what was wrong.

The cops were coming.

We jumped in the car, and Mark drove of. The breath of the two other boys told me that Mark was the one assigned driver tonight. At least, I hope he was. I really didn't want to be in a car driven by a drunk boy, especially if his driving was anything like Max's.

Simon, who sat beside me, threw an arm around me and I smiled at him. Max turned around.

"So did you enjoy the party?" I nodded, still smiling.

"It was great!" I told him. Simon laughed.

"Even though it was nothing like the party's those rich guys throw?"

I rolled my eyes. "Trust me, those get boring pretty fast. The music sucks and the people who are dancing are actually far beyond making out."

The three boys cheered.

"Yeah! We've beaten the Ipswich money!" We all laughed.

* * *

A few minutes later, we stopped near another shed. I turned to Simon.

"Another party?" I wondered. He laughed and shook his head.

"Nah, Max and Mark are gonna practice here, I'm taking you home."

Mark, who was already out the car, turned to me.

"Unless you want to watch! Or maybe you can join Simon and Max. We already know you know how to move."

I turned to Simon, confused. He chuckled.

"We're in a dance crew." He explained. "At least, Max and I are, Mark drums in a band."

"Cool! I'd love to watch!"

Simon, Max and Mark grinned triumphantly. Then, Mark grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the shed.

Inside, nine people were waiting. I had seen a few of them at the party. They looked at me surprised, which made me wonder if shouldn't have gone home.

Simon must have felt my insecurity, because he stepped beside me and threw an arm around my shoulder again.

"Hey guys!" He greeted his friends. "This is Rachel. She's a friend of ours." Then he turned to me.

"Rachel, meet Abe, Sam, Ian, Marc, Will, Lizzie, Natasha, Ivy and Mischa."

I gave them a small smile. The guy with messy blond hair, whistled. I thought his name was Abe.

"Not bad, Si, not bad at all!" I looked at Simon with a confused look and he rolled his eyes.

"Small piece of advice: Ignore Ian. He's crazy, but harmless."

Then again, I never was a star in remembering names. We all laughed, including Ian.

The evening was great. First we listened to the band, while the dance crew kept me company. Will played guitar, Lizzie played the keyboard, Ivy sang and played the guitar as well and Mark drummed. They were all great.

After they were done rehearsing, the others started their practice. There was a small fight after a while, because Sam said that Ian hadn't practiced enough, but Abe stopped that one very quickly. I watched, cheered at the right moments, and had fun.

While the crew was practicing their dancing, the band sat with me. I liked Will and Lizzie, but Ivy was a bitch. She kept talking about how everyone sucked at whatever they were doing. The others simply ignored her.

After a while, Lizzie smiled at me and said:

"I bet you don't have a clue who's who, right?" I laughed, and shook my head.

"I suck at remembering names." I confessed and she shrugged.

"Trust me, so do I. Anyway, let me save you. Pay attention, alright?" We both laughed at her teacher-voice, and then she started her lesson.

According to her, I was a quick learner. According to me, she was a patient teacher.

Abe turned out to be the unofficial leader. He was twenty year black, bald man with a dark beard and small green eyes. His entire arms were covered in tattoos. He also was the one who had started their crew, and was, as Lizzie said, 'the best dancer in the universe'.

Sam, or Samuel, was next. He was twenty as well, and had red hair, the Weasley kind of red. His skin was, as you might have guessed by his hair, as pale as could be. He also had freckles, which he hated, according to Lizzie. His eyes where the lightest shade of gray I had ever seen in someone's eyes.

Liz told me he was nice but could blow up pretty fast. That mostly happened when someone hadn't trained hard enough or when someone joked about his hair or freckles.

Ian was the jester of the group. He had black hair, that he kept hidden under the hood of his hoodie and green eyes. He was pale as well, and was a bit of a player. Qua character he could have been Reid's twin brother. Or older brother, actually, since he was nineteen.

And then came Marc, or Marcello. His parents were from Italy, but he had never been there. He had dark, short hair and a tanned skin and eyes that were between dark brown and black. He was eighteen years old, just a few months older then Max and Simon, and he was their closest friend.

Will had turned twenty-one a few months back and was therefore the oldest of the group. He also was the founder of the band, Abe's best friend and Natasha's boyfriend. He had light brown hair with a slightly tanned skin and dark, almost black, eyes. He played both the guitar and the keyboard, but he preferred the first.

Natasha was a Russian, twenty year old cleaner. Her mom was sick, and she took care of her. I was impressed by her. She managed to handle her job, take care of her mother and still was an amazing dancer. Her father had died a few years back, just before they moved to America. Lizzie told me that she had a neighbor who looked after her mother while she worked or danced.

She was pale, with blue eyes and blond hair, that was cut just above her shoulders.

As I said before, the twenty-year old Ivy was the bitch of the group. According to Lizzie, no one liked her, but she was the best singer they could find. So they had to put up with her.

I had to admit she was beautiful. With her long blond hair, big blue eyes and pale skin, she looked like a princess who just walked out of a fairytale.

In this world, I guess the term 'supermodel' described her best.

Mischa was the party girl in the group. With her seventeen year, she wasn't old enough to drink, but she still was the one that they had to drive home from a party every time, because she was knocked out by all the alcohol. She had dark brown hair, brown eyes and had a tanned skin.

And then came Lizzie. She was seventeen as well. She had big green eyes and long light brown hair. She was kind of pale, but not to pale. Her full name was Elizabeth, but she threatened to kill anyone who called her that. So of course, almost everyone used that name.

Both the band and the crew had a nice story to their start.

When Abe started the crew, about a year ago, he immediately asked Samuel, who he had beaten in a dance battle a few days before that.

A few days later they met Natasha, in a strip club. Natasha, desperate for money, danced there almost every night. Sam and Abe asked her to join them, but she refused, saying she needed the job.

Two days later, Abe and Sam found Ian, as he was beaten in a dance battle. They saw his potential and Ian didn't need a lot of convincing to join them.

One day after that, Natasha suddenly called Abe on the number he had given her. Since she refused to do anything beside dancing, her boss fired her.

One week later, Marc got in trouble with a local gang. Ian, with his big mouth, got involved and Abe and Sam followed right after. Abe managed to solve the problem without any fighting, and Marc invited them to his brothers party that evening. There, they saw Marc dancing. As soon as he was sober, the next day around three p.m., he became an official member of their crew. He also got Simon and Mark in.

Three days later, the entire crew saw a very drunk Mischa dancing on the table during a party. She, just as Marc, was sobered up and invited to join them.

When Abe's crew was complete, Will decided he needed something to do with his new spare time, the time he usually wasted with his best friend. So he started a band. He already knew Ivy, and her voice, so after a few hours he had a singer.

One day, he heard Mischa play her guitar on the street, trying to earn some money. He gave her a few dollar and offered her a place in their band.

The band found a drummer, Jack, so they searched for a place to practice. Abe offered to share their shed. Ivy wasn't to happy about having to share a rehearsing place, but the others where all to happy about having a place to practice.

Mark went there to watch his big brothers sometimes, and when Jack broke his wrist, Max and Simon told Will he could drum. He was shy at first, but after he showed his talent, he was quickly accepted. Jack decided not to come back, so Mark earned himself an official place in the band.

After both the groups where complete, they spent an entire evening trying to think of a name. In the end, the dance crew was named 'the shadows', while the band received the name 'Silverton'.

Not long after that, Natasha and Abe started dating and their story was complete.

* * *

In the end, I didn't get home until two in the morning. Not that I cared, I had a great time. It was just to bad that school would start again the next morning. I hugged Simon, Mark and Max goodbye and then climbed back into my room, using the same way I got in.

I knew Pogue knew I had left, and that he, or worse: my parents, would interrogate me in the morning. But I didn't really care. All I cared about was that the past night had been the best night of my life.

* * *

**Please Review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Another point of view**

"I can't believe het!"

Kate looked up with a bored faces. Her boyfriend was complaining again, probably about her. Apparently her boyfriend wasn't too happy about the time she spend with Chase, the new hot kid.

Pogue was hissing at Caleb as they played there usual game of foosball. Caleb looked bored, but tried his best to conceal it. Kate decided to save her friend, and rose from her chair.

"Hey, babe. Who's winning?" She asked as she gave Pogue a peck on his cheek. Normally, she would have done something more, but Pogue was really serious about his games, and could get upset if you disturbed him.

Just as Kate asked her question, Caleb shot a goal.

"Pay up!" The tanned boy said as he extended his hand. Pogue sighed and slapped the money in it. Then he turned to Kate.

"Caleb." He answered the question, a bit late. Kate tried to hide her smile.

"What were you yelling about before I came in?" She asked him, rather having the fight now then just before she went to sleep. That way, she might actually be able to sleep that night.

But Pogue surprised her, something that didn't happen a lot.

"Rachel. She was grounded, because she disappeared at the party last night. Then I practically begged mom and dad to let her come to Nicky's with me, so they said yes. But when I asked Rachel, she said she didn't feel like it!"

Behind Pogue, Caleb rolled his eyes. Kate had to hide her laugh. She knew Pogue had a habit of over exaggerating. Kate didn't see the problem.

"Pogue…" She slowly started, not wanting to offend her boyfriend, "Why do you care about Rachel wanting to come? It's her choice, you know. And she never really was the party girl anyway."

Before Pogue and Kate had started dating, Kate hadn't really liked Rachel. Or actually: She had really disliked her. Whenever the sons would go to parties, Rachel would always follow them, hanging all over her brother's three best friends. But when she and Pogue started dating, she had soon learned that Rachel only came along to hunt some of the other girls away. After that, Kate had almost likes Rachel. Almost. The girl was a bit to sarcastic for Kate.

But apparently, Pogue's story wasn't done yet.

"She has never said no! NEVER!" He was almost yelling by then, so Kate laid her hand on his shoulder to calm him down. It helped, and he continued his story slightly calmer. "But when I left, I forgot my wallet, so I drove back. And when I came there, I saw Rachel stepping into someone's car!"

Kate frowned. She didn't knew a lot about Rachel, but whenever she would go to a party, she would come along with her brother. It was weird that Rachel would step into someone else's car.

"Did you recognize it?" Caleb asked his friend. Apparently he hadn't ignored the conversation, as Kate had thought.

Pogue shook his head. "No." He answered. "But I'm sure it wasn't anyone who goes to Spencer's. It was a cheap Toyota, no one in private school would drive in something like that.

Kate shrugged. "Maybe someone with a scholarship?" She suggested, but Caleb immediately shook his head.

"No, Sarah's the only one with a scholarship right now. And even if it was someone from Spencer's, where would they go? As far as I know, there's no party in Ipswich. So then Nicky's would be the only place to go to."

Pogue looked down. "I'm worried about her." He admitted. "I mean, she hardly ever talks to me. I never see her talk to friends and every time my parents talk to her, they just end up yelling at her."

Kate frowned. "They yell at her, or they yell at each other?" She asked. Pogue thought about it for a second, and then looked at her questioningly. "Why does that matter?"

Kate lifted her eyebrow, knowing from experience that was all it took to make Pogue talk.

"They yell at her." He admitted. Caleb now frowned as well.

"That's weird. I mean, that would probably make her the first teenage girl who doesn't yell back when someone's mad at her."

Kate send him a warning look. "Teenage girl or teenagers?"

Caleb looked sheepish. "Uhm… Teenagers?"

Pogue snapped his fingers. "Back to Rach, please!"

"What's with Rachel?" Reid asked, as he and Tyler came closer.

"Who's Rachel?" Sarah joined the conversation. Caleb took the lead.

"Rachel is Pogue's little sister. You'll probably meet her Monday." Then he turned to Reid and Tyler. "Rachel was grounded last night, because she vanished without telling us, and now she went out with someone in a cheap Toyota without telling anyone."

Sarah's eyes widened. "There didn't happen to be three boys in the car, right?" She asked carefully. Five pairs of eyes shot her way. Pogue nodded.

"Huh. Talk about coincidences." Sarah muttered softly, and when she saw the confused looks of everyone else, she started to explained herself.

"I can't be sure, but I do have three friends in a cheap Toyota. They were at the party at the Dell's last night, because I had invited them. I probably would have introduced you to them, but I lost them in the crowd, and then the police came… But anyway, Simon, one of them, told me last night that he had met a girl there, Rachel, and that he would take her to a party in Boston tonight."

Her friends stared at her.

"You're right." Reid then said. "That is a coincidence."

Sarah shrugged shyly. "Sorry Pogue. I didn't know it was your sister. Otherwise I would have said something."

Pogue looked worried. "Those friends, they wouldn't… I mean, they are…" Sarah glared at him.

"They wouldn't hurt Rachel, if that's what you're trying to ask. But tell me this: Why did Simon say that he drove Rachel home, after she watched her lift ride away before her eyes?"

Three of the four boys shared a guilty look. But Pogue's eyes simply widened. "You mean she was still there when we left?"

Tyler rolled his eyes.

"I told you we should wait for Rach. Now she's grounded, because we dumped her at the party."

****

Pogue sat in the chair beside Rachel's window. Since his little sister wasn't home yet, he had decided to wait up for her so he could personally apologize.

That decision had been made over two hours ago. By now, he was starting to doubt the intelligence of his plan.

And of course, just before he decided to leave, the window was shoved open from the outside. Rachel climbed in and walked to her bed.

"Rach!" The girl screamed and turned around with a jump. She sighed when she saw her brother.

"Sorry." He mumbled. Rachel looked at him for a second, and then walked towards her bathroom. She put her hand on the doorknob, but she couldn't open it. After pulling it a few times, she sighed and turned around, facing her brother.

Pogue was shocked by her expression. She looked tired. Not like that was weird, it was already two in the morning. But it wasn't that sort of tired. Her expression told him to say what he needed to say and then leave, because she didn't really care anymore.

"I'm sorry." He whispered softly.

"You already said that. It's alright, just go to sleep." He looked up with a surprised look, and then he realised she was talking about before, when he had frightened her.

"No!" He quickly corrected her. "I mean about leaving you at the party. I thought you had already left." Rachel shrugged softly.

"Don't worry. It's not like it something I'm not used to." Pogue frowned.

"What do you mean?" He wondered. And that was when Rachel lost her patience.

"Think about it real hard, you'll figure it out. Now, if you would please let go of my door and leave my room, that would be amazing." She snapped. Pogue blinked. Then he walked towards her door.

Just before he closed it behind him, he turned around one last time.

"I'm really sorry, Rachel. I promise I won't tell mom and dad about you leaving tonight, and I'll try to get you out of house arrest."

Then he left, leaving his sister thoroughly confused.

Not that he was much better. He laid the complete night awake, wondering about what Rachel had meant when she had said that 'it wasn't anything she wasn't used to'.

****

"How many times did we take Rachel to a party?" Pogue asked his friends the next day. They were sitting in their English class. Luckily for them, all of them, meaning the four brothers and Kate and Sarah, were in that class.

Reid shrugged carelessly. "Not sure, twenty or something? Why?"

Pogue looked down at his open notebook, that was filled with mindless scrabbles.

"How many times did we bring her home?"

His three friends froze for a second, and then looked up. Pogue looked up as well, meeting their gazes. All of them looked guilty.

Sarah and Kate had followed their conversation as well, and both of them gasped.

"What the fuck! You forgot to take your own sister home? After you practically dragged her to a party?" Kate nearly screamed at him. Almost the entire class was now looking at the six friends. Luckily for them, the teacher then entered the class, stopping all the remarks in progress.

The day passed slowly for Pogue. Whenever he saw his little sister, he'd notice new things about her. Things he knew he should have noticed before.

Like the fact that she was always alone. Like the fact that almost everyone whispered about her as she passed them.

And for the first time, Pogue noticed that his sister wasn't happy. And he knew that he should have noticed that a long time ago, that he should have helped her instead of focusing on his own perfect life.

And that was when he swore that he would make up for his mistakes.


	5. Chapter 5

**Like the wind**

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* * *

**

Time pasts like the wind. I wasn't sure where I had heard that phrase, but it certainly fitted my life in those weeks. My schedule was rather simple.

From Monday to Friday I went to school. There I did the best I could. I never was an incredible student, and the only reason my grades were that good was because I didn't do anything beside studying. So I paid attention in class, did my homework and focused on my schoolwork.

At least, from Monday morning to Friday afternoon.

Every Friday, around five o'clock, the Nelson's picked me up. We partied when there was a party, and we spent the rest of our time dancing.

The second time I went to the shed with Simon, Mark and Max, Abe dared me to dance for them.

I did, and they liked it. So from then on, I practiced with them every weekend.

I still wasn't an official partner of their crew, but I was getting there.

On Saturday I first jogged a few miles. After that I did the homework I hadn't done in school yet, and then I went to Boston to repeat Friday night's schedule. But on Saturday I didn't return home. Instead I stayed with one of my new friends, or all of them when they decided to all stay in the shed. The only ones who were missing then were Natasha, who had to take care of her mom, and Ivy, who hated us to much to share a room with us for too long

So all in all, those were the most perfect weeks in my life. And I still wasn't done talking about the progress in my life.

During school, I no longer was alone all of the time. During lunch I sat with Pogue and his friends. They were okay. I still didn't say a lot, but they were nice to me. They even say with me in class some days.

Pogue, Caleb, Reid and Tyler had apologized for leaving me at the parties. I still wasn't sure if I should forgive them for that. After all, you can't undo the mistakes of five years by saying that you're sorry. But I was pretty sure they meant it.

And so here I sat. At the lunch table with the most popular group in school.

It's never too late for miracles.

"So I heard you joined the dance crew?" Sarah asked me, wearing the huge smile girls always were when they know something you didn't want them to know.

And of course, the whole table was now looking at me. The whole table means Pogue, Caleb, Reid, Tyler, Kate, Sarah and Chase, the new guy who seemed to get along with Caleb, Reid and Tyler. Kate liked him, so of course Pogue hated him.

"Dance crew?" Reid asked curiously. I groaned and glared at Sarah. Her triumphant smile turned into an innocent one. When she realised I wasn't going to explain anything, she started to speak.

"Simon and Mark are in a dance group. They dance at parties sometimes. And now Rachel's an official member of the group."

"Not yet official." I objected mumbling. The others ignored me.

"Are they good?" Reid asked. "Maybe they can dance at my party next Saturday."

Sarah's face brightened, as far as that was still possible. "That's a great idea! Then we can finally see Rachel dance!"

And that was when Pogue asked the most stupid question I've ever heard.

"Since when do you dance, Rach?"

I stared at him for a second. Then I rolled my eyes.

"Well, lets see. I started to take dance classes when I was ten. My first show was when I was twelve, and since then I think I've danced about fifteen shows. Most of them you saw!"

Pogue looked guilty, but I wasn't in the mood for his apologizes. I couldn't believe the fact that he went to shows where I performed, and didn't even notice me! So I jumped up, grabbed my bag and walked out of the cafeteria.

When I walked through the swinging doors, I wasn't sure where to go to at first. Then I saw the forest that almost surrounded Spencer's through a window and I knew my destination. I walked outside and kept walking until I reached the perfect tree. It's branches where low, so it was easy to climb, and no one from Spencer's could see me, unless they actually walked into the forest as well. I quickly climbed in and sat on a branch, about two yard above the ground.

I leaned against the trunk, completely relaxed. I loved these kind of moments.

"You know, I did see you." The sudden voice scared me so bad, I lost my balance and I started to fall. Suddenly I froze mid-air. I looked towards the guy who had just arrived and saw Tyler standing there, his eyes black as… well, I'd say the night, but I hated that expression. I mean, the night's hardly ever completely black.

"You okay?" Tyler's voice awoke me from my thoughts.

"I would be if you'd let me down." I told him. He looked a bit sheepish.

"Right, sorry." But instead of landing on the ground, I flew back up. Tyler sat me down on the branch I had just fallen of. Then he appeared beside me.

"You cheat!" I told him. "You're supposed to climb up, that's half the fun."

Tyler laughed. "I can do with the other half of the fun." I couldn't help but smile.

"What are you doing here, Ty?" I asked him and his smile disappeared. He looked down to the ground.

"I just wanted to make sure you knew you weren't completely invisible. I did see you during those shows. And Pogue probably did as well, I think he just forgot about it."

I sighed. "Maybe that's the problem. I mean, brother's aren't supposed to forget about those kind of things."

Tyler nodded. "I know, Rach. And I don't blame you for being mad…"

I wouldn't let him finish. "I'm not mad, Tyler. Maybe I was at first, but not anymore. I'm just…disappointed, I guess."

Tyler nodded softly. "You are a great dancer, Rach." I rolled my eyes.

"You're just saying that. You probably didn't even see me."

Tyler groaned. "When you were fifteen you played the lead in the musical 'the Wizard of Oz'. They had changed it a bit, so there was more dancing in it. Your singing was beautiful and your dancing was amazing and everyone loved it. When you were fourteen you danced in every show that year. And you were great. Before the summer vacation…"

I laughed, and interrupted him. "Okay! Okay, you passed the test. Thank you for all the compliments." We both laughed.

"But what I'm trying to say, Rachel," Tyler stopped laughing and resumed his pep talk, "is that you aren't as invisible as you think. And Pogue really loves you. We all do."

I stopped laughing then, and looked at Tyler, searching for that look in his eyes that would tell me it was a joke. I didn't find it.

"Thank you." I then told him softly. He put his arm around me and pulled me a bit closer to him.

"I'm sorry I was so late with saying it, Rachel." He whispered in my ear.

We spend the rest of the lunchtime sitting like that, and for a second I could pretend that was our world. A beautiful, loving world where everyone was happy.

And that was when the bell rang.

* * *

I was running home from school. Pogue had offered to drive me home, but I felt like running so I had refused. He had apologized for forgetting about me dancing, but I still wasn't ready to forgive him. He made so many mistakes and did so little to make it right. I just didn't know what to do.

"Hey Rachel!" A voice suddenly called in a pestering voice. I looked over my shoulder, only to see Aaron's car there. Aaron was leaning out of his window, wearing the look he liked to call his 'bad-ass' look. Reid usually left out the bad when he described it.

Aaron Abbott was the arch-enemy of the sons of Ipswich. At first, he just hated them because they were more popular then he was. Then he stole Caleb's girlfriend, and the sons were done with him. They had known each other for nearly thirteen years, and in that time they were the cause of several hospital visits for Aaron. It hardly ever happened the other way around, for the simple reason that Reid usually was the one to start the fight. And he wasn't afraid to cheat. If you don't understand what cheating means for him, let me say it this way: He hid his eyes a lot of times during those fights.

And now Aaron Abbott was here with me. With no one else. Joy.

"Ah! If it isn't little Parry. What's the problem? Did your brother forget to bring his little sister home?"

Ah, not alone. Riley Bael, one of Aaron's followers, was there as well. This wasn't going to end well.

Aaron stopped his car and jumped out. Riley followed his example, and then Bordy, another Aaron-lover, exited the car as well.

I turned around, and started to run. A real run this time, the fleeing kind.

But I wasn't fast enough. Before I could really gain full speed, Aaron's hand closed around my upper arm and he roughly pulled me towards him. I cried out in pain. Then I turned around and stared him straight in the eyes.

"Let me home!" I told him angry. The three boys simply laughed.

"Ah, baby!" Bordy laughed. "Don't you want to have some fun?" My eyes widened in fear. I knew these guys for years, and they were crazy. He once almost pushed Reid of a cliff.

Aaron swung me around and pushed me against the car. As he pushed himself against me, he bowed forward until his mouth was right next to my ear. His tongue left his mouth and touched my ear.

"We're gonna have some fun, babe." He whispered softly, before opening his car door and pushing me inside. I cried out for help, even though I knew no one would hear me.

* * *

Riley drove the car, as Aaron and Bordy held me in the backseat. Their hands roamed over my body, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get loose. I tried to hold in my cries, because I realized that only made it more fun for them, but that was a hard thing to do.

And then the car stopped. I was dragged out of the car by Aaron and he tossed me on the ground. It was covered in leaves. We were in the forest.

"This is far enough, no one ever comes here!" Aaron told his friends. I tried to stand up, to run away, but Aaron pushed me back against the ground with his foot.

"I think we should go deeper, what if someone drives by?" Riley asked. He sounded worried.

"Idem." Bordy said his vote. Then Aaron roughly pulled me back up.

"Alright, let's go."

"Aaron, wait! I have an idea!" Riley walked forward and ripped of my blouse. I tried to cover myself with my arms, but Aaron pulled them back.

"Come on, sweetheart, why don't you give us a look?" I cried as Riley blindfolded me with my blouse. Then he pushed me. I fell again.

"Let's go." He laughed. The others laughed along, as Aaron dragged me up and pushed me again.

And so they continued, dragging and pushing me through the forest. I had no idea how long we were walking. I only knew that I wanted it to last forever. It was so much better then what would come next.

And then they didn't drag me up again.

"This is far enough!" Riley told his friends. A hand grabbed my skirt and ripped it away. The rest of my clothes soon followed. I begged them to stop, but they wouldn't listen and just continued their fun.

Maybe I had been stupid, to believe that my life would actually get better. Maybe I had just received all those friendships to make this seem worse.

If you would have asked me a month ago if I was afraid to die, I would have said no, without a second doubt, for the simple reason I had nothing to live for.

But now, I was just starting to believe that there were people who loved me, people who would miss me. And now everything was taken away.

I cried out in pain as the three boys had their fun. I tried to push the pain away, but it was so hard. I kept begging them to stop until I couldn't speak anymore, because my throat was too sore. And not being able to see, not being able to know what was happening until it was already too late to prepare myself, only made it worse.

After a while Aaron finally took of the blindfold. By then, it was already dark. I assumed we were deep in the forest, because we had been walking so long, but I didn't really know. I had never been here before.

And then the three pulled out their pocketknife's. I tried to back away, but Aaron walked forward and pushed me against the ground, where he held me down.

I was certain they were going to kill me, but I stopped begging. I didn't care if I would die anymore, just hoping they would do it quickly.

But of course, they didn't. They started to cut me, drawing shapes on my body. A few mangled sounds escaped my mouth, but my throat was to sore to really scream.

"Ah, don't worry." Aaron told me with his malicious grin. "It's not like we'll actually ruin anything."

And from that moment all three of the boys started telling me how ugly, how stupid, how worthless I was.

And I knew it had to be the truth.

Pogue had been right for ignoring me all those years. I should have thanked him for taking me to those parties, instead of whining about him leaving me there.

My parents where right about hitting me, about hating me. I was no one, I was never meant to live. I should have died during birth, or no: I should have never started to grow in my mom's stomach.

Simon, Mark, Max and all the others probably only talked to me out of pity, because someone had to help the useless, worthless girl. Or maybe I was just a joke to them, someone to make them laugh once in a while.

And Aaron was right. I had deserved this pain. This was all my fault.

Rachel Parry, the ugly, fat, ungrateful bitch. The one with the big brother who always took her to the parties, but she still never thanked him. Instead, she made him apologize.

I was a bitch. A whore.

I deserved to die.

And then Aaron bowed forward. His mouth touched my ear, just like before.

"If you ever tell someone about this, I promise you that you will die. You hear me? I will torture you to death, you and every single one of your 'friends." Then he pulled back and stood up. He looked down on me and spit on me.

"You're disgusting." He told me, before turning around and walking away. His friends followed him, after spitting on me as well. And so they left me in the forest to die.

* * *

_I'm sorry this chapter was so dark. It just had to be done. Since the next part of the story will actually be Pogue's point of view, that one will be in 'another point of view'.__ That chapter will be up soon. So this story and 'another point of view' actually belong together. _

_I've also put photo's of the characters online. Only those of the OC's, because the other people (meaning Sarah, Kate, the sons of Ipswich, etc.) are the same as in the movie. _

_Then another thing: I've put on a poll about who you want Rachel to end up with. Please vote!_

_I have decided not to update another chapter until I get at least one review. I need to know what kind of chapters you like, so please tell me. _

_And at last: I want to thank everyone who reads this story._


	6. Chapter 6

**Find a way**

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* * *

**

Pogue was pacing through the living room.

"She should have been home by now! It's already over seven!"

Kate and Caleb shared a look. Since Pogue had realized how much he had been neglecting his sister, he had become slightly overprotective of her. Usually, Kate didn't mind so much, after all it was kind of cute, but sometimes he took things a little bit to far.

"Calm down Pogue. She's probably just with friends or something." Pogue shook his head.

"She would have answered her phone if that was the case. And by the way, she never goes to them on Thursday, only in the weekend. And otherwise she would have told me."

Kate had to admit he had a point there. Pogue's protectiveness had nearly forced Rachel to hand over her schedule to her brother. Not that she seemed to mind.

Kate sighed softly and grabbed her phone.

"Hey Sarah, can you do me a favor? I need Simon's phone number."

"Uhm…okay? Please tell me you and Pogue didn't break up and you're looking for a rebound?"

"Nah, we're looking for Rachel and she won't answer her phone, so we figured she might be with Simon."

"Oh! Sorry. Wait a sec, let me just find his number. Alright, here it is."

"Wait a sec. Let me just grab a paper. Okay, go!"

"Okay, his number is 541-335-4548.

"Thank Sarah. See you later!"

"Bye!"

She hung up and handed the paper in her hand to Pogue. He smiled to her.

"Thanks Kate. You're a genius." Then he grabbed his phone.

"Uhm.. Hey Simon. This is Pogue."

"Yeah, Rachel's brother. Have you seen her."

Kate looked at Pogue, who was starting to tense up more and more. As soon as Kate had given him the phone number, he had relaxed, probably assuming that Rachel was indeed with her friends in Boston, despite his previous arguments why that couldn't be true.

But now he was getting scared, Kate could see it in his eyes.

And then he screamed into the phone.

"I offered to drive her home! She was the one who said she'd rather run! Don't you dare blame this on me."

Kate knew that Rachel was hoping that Pogue and her other friends would get along. Apparently, her dream wouldn't come true.

"Fine. Thanks." Pogue snapped into the phone, before hanging up and throwing it against the wall. He fell down on the bed and hid his face in his hands.

"They haven't seen her?" Caleb asked carefully. Pogue's head slowly moved from left to right.

"Simon blamed me. Said I should have looked after her." He mumbled in a lifeless tone. Kate and Caleb shared a worried look. Then Kate walked forward.

"It's not your fault, babe. Rachel wanted to run. It was her choice."

And then it was Caleb's turn to pick up his phone.

"Tyler. Hey. Come to Pogue's place, and bring Reid and Sarah. Rachel's missing."

Tyler started to say something on the other end of the line.

"We don't know. Just come, okay?"

He hung up and started to call Sarah when he noticed Kate calling again.

"Hey Sarah. Reid and Tyler will pick you up soon. Rachel's missing."

She hung up before Sarah even had a change to ask questions.

* * *

"This doesn't help!" Pogue yelled at Caleb. The usually quiet living room of the Parry's was filled with people. As soon as Simon had received Pogue's phone call, he had gathered the whole dance crew and the band and they all went to Ipswich. Only Ivy had refused to, as she put it, 'go all the way to Ipswich to search for a spoilt bitch who's just begging for attention'. Chase had come as well, after Kate had called him. They had already searched at school, at the Dells and at Nicky's, but she was no where to be found.

Now they were back were they had begun, and they still weren't any closer to finding Rachel.

Sarah jumped up.

"Okay, so we know she isn't at school, at the Dells or with friends. What other places are there were someone could hide? Is there a party or something?"

Simon sighed and shook his head. "Not as far as I know. And even if there was one, Rachel wouldn't have gone alone. And it isn't like her to just disappear without a warning."

Chase frowned. "Why don't we drive the way she walked? Maybe we can find something that way."

Caleb nodded, immediately taking charge.

"Okay, Tyler, Pogue, go. We'll stay here to try to contact Rachel." Tyler and Pogue jumped up and ran outside to Tyler's hummer. They drove off, leaving their friends to search for a new clue.

Tyler didn't drive to fast, afraid they might miss something important. Both boys looked out of the window, desperately seeking for something, anything, that could lead them to Rachel. Their eyes were black to help them see in the dark. Pogue wished that he could just use to find Rachel, but that didn't help. That only helped to find her general location, meaning Ipswich. Members of the covenant could only sense exactly where the other members were.

"There!" Pogue suddenly screamed. Tyler suppressed the leaning to bring his hands to his ears, and instead drove to the place Pogue was pointing to. There he quickly saw what Pogue was pointing at. Both guys jumped out of the car and ran to Rachel's schoolbag.

After Pogue rumbled through it, he pulled out her phone and showed it to Tyler.

That wasn't good.

"What do we do now?" Tyler whispered softly. Pogue dropped down on the ground, burying his face in the bag. He cried. Tyler stood beside him, not sure what to do.

And then Pogue completely lost it. He jumped up and threw Rachel's bag away.

"There had to be a fucking way to find her!" He screamed. Tyler winced, but gave no other reaction. "We're warlocks! How can it be that we can't do something as simple as finding my little sister?" He broke down in sobs again, this time burying his face in his hands.

"Why?" He whispered. "Why? Why? Why?"

Tyler kneeled down beside him.

"Pogue." He whispered to his friend. "Calm down. We will find Rachel. I promise. Trust me, alright? Just calm down, and we'll continue searching." Slowly his friend calmed again, until he wiped away his tears.

"You're right. Let's go." He said in an even voice. Both guys jumped up and walked back to the car.

"So Rachel runs home from school, and suddenly she drops her bag?" Tyler mumbled softly. Then he shook his head. "No, of course not. Someone must have come and grabbed her, making her loose her bag. Yes, that's it." Pogue didn't disturb his friend. Tyler was the youngest and usually the shyest, but he also was incredible smart, and this was the way he thought.

"So someone grabbed her. But who?" He shook his head. "We can't know that. So next question: Where did he take her? Where would I take someone I kidnapped?" Pogue winced at the words. He knew Tyler was probably right, but that didn't make it easier.

Tyler started to pace.

"So we know she's in Ipswich, she has to be. It probably was somewhere quiet, so an abandoned warehouse or something. But there aren't any of those nearby, all of them are at least a half hour drive away. No, that can't be right. He would have taken her somewhere quiet, and he would have taken a quiet road. Unless she was unconscious." Pogue winced again, but Tyler was too focused on his puzzle to really realize what it meant for Rachel.

"But let's assume she wasn't unconscious. An abandoned place nearby."

Pogue sighed softly. "How about the forest?" He mumbled. Tyler's head flew up.

"The forest! That's it. Maybe a small house there or something. That would be perfect!"

Pogue decided that the thinking part was done. Now they needed action. He grabbed his phone, quickly telling Caleb about their idea.

* * *

Twenty minutes later the whole group was staring at the dark forest in front of them. It was already eleven o'clock, and no one really felt comfortable with the idea of walking into the darkness.

Caleb sighed. "Okay. So everyone has their torches, right?" Everyone nodded. "Okay. Let's split up. Remember your route. We'll meet her again in two hours."

The sons of Ipswich formed a group with Kate and Sarah. Mischa, Natasha, Lizzy and the Nelson brothers formed the second group and the last one existed of Sam, Ian, Marc, Will, Abe and Chase.

And then the three groups vanished in the woods, all heading in a different direction.

They kept walking, yelling Rachel's name, practically begging her to answer, but they never received a respond.

Caleb was just about to tell his group they had to return, when Reid suddenly yelled Pogue's name. Caleb watched as his four friends ran towards Reid, but then they froze. Caleb quickly ran towards them, scared about what he was about to see.

It wasn't what he had expected, though it was hardly better.

The ground was colored red by the blood. And Rachel's clothes laid in the middle of it.

"No!" Pogue screamed. "Rachel! Come on, answer! I know you're here! Rachel! RACHEL!"

Caleb looked at his friend, who was crying. Not that he was the only one. The three other boys had tears in their eyes, but they tried to restrain them. The girls didn't. Kate tried to hug her boyfriend, but he wasn't ready to give up just yet.

"Rachel! RACH! Come on, answer! PLEASE, RACH!" He kept yelling his sister's name, as he walked through the trees, not looking where he was going. His friends quickly followed him, scared he might get lost.

For a second he stopped, and Caleb was starting to worry about him. And then he screamed again.  
"Rachel!" He ran forward. Kate quickly ran after him, followed by the others.

And there they saw her. Their little sister.

She was laying on her stomach on the ground, completely naked, covered in blood and soaked by the rain that had just started falling. Pogue fell down on his knees beside her, turning her around.

Her eyes were closed.

"Come on, Rach." He begged her. "Come on, wake up." She didn't move. Tyler took of his jacket and draped it over her. Reid took his jacket of as well, but didn't use it to cover Rachel. Instead he pulled of his shirt, handing it to Pogue. After that he pulled his jacket back on.

Pogue carefully pulled the shirt over her head and then put on Tyler's jacket. He lifted her up in his arms, and walked away. His friends followed him.

Caleb pulled out his cell phone, and quickly called Simon and Chase, to let them know they had found her. He told them to go to Pogue's place and that Caleb would send Sarah and Kate there as well, but that Pogue, Tyler, Reid and he would take Rachel to the hospital.

After that Caleb called Pogue's parents.

"Hello sir. This is Caleb." He greeted Pogue's father politely.

"Hello Caleb. Please tell me my son's not in jail again?" Caleb suppressed the tendency to yell at the man. Had he completely forgotten about the fact that his daughter was missing?"

"I just wanted to let you know we found Rachel, sir."

"Oh." His voice suddenly didn't sound so happy anymore. "That's… good. Tell her she's grounded." Caleb balled his fists.

"We found her in the forest, sir. We think she was kidnapped. And… she was tortured. Probably raped. We're taking her to the hospital right now."

"Raped?" Mr. Parry replied sounding shocked. Finally, Caleb thought.

"I think so, sir. Her cloths were ripped."

"That doesn't mean anything. Listen, just take her home, alright. Rachel probably got herself into this again, and I don't want to ruin the family's reputation."

Caleb froze. "YOU WHAT?" He then yelled into the phone.

"Don't talk to me like that, young man. What would your father think?"

"Probably that I was right. I tell you your daughter was kidnapped, tortured and raped, and you tell me it probably was her own fault and we shouldn't take her to a hospital? How can you?"

"DO NOT tell me how to raise my children, Caleb Danvers. I know what I'm doing. Take her home, send her to bed and I'll deal with her when I'm home."

"Yeah? And what if she bleeds to death?"

"Then call Mr. Garwin!" Pogue's father yelled, before hanging up.

"What is it?" Sarah softly asked her boyfriend, as he caught up with the rest of them. Caleb looked up to see five worried faces looking at him. Or four, actually. Pogue was still focused on Rachel.

"Your father doesn't want us to take Rachel to a hospital. He said it was her own fault and that we should just take her home and let Reid's father treat her."

Sarah and Kate gasped, while Pogue simply cursed.

"I'm not letting my sister bleed to death, simply because my parents hate her. We're going to the hospital."

"No." A small voice suddenly whispered. "Don't. I wanna go home."

Everyone looked down at the girl in Pogue's arms. "Rach…" Tyler softly started, but Rachel stared at him with a look that was so frightened, that no one dared to say that they would go to the hospital.

"Okay." Pogue finally said. "Let's take you home."

* * *

When they finally reached Pogue's place, the driveway was filled with cars. Pogue quickly exited the car, walking inside where several gasps where heard.

"What are you doing? I thought you'd take her to the hospital?" Simon hissed.

Pogue glared at him. "Keep your voice down, you're gonna wake Rachel. And she didn't want to go to the hospital."

Before Simon could say anything else, Reid jumped in. "Quit it, both of you. This is not the time. Just take her upstairs, my father is already on his way."

Kate and Sarah shared a look. It was funny to see Reid stopping a fight. The world was full of surprises, apparently.

Pogue took his little sister upstairs. Simon moved to follow him, but Sarah stopped him.

"Give them a minute, alright? I don't think Rachel would like it if she wakes up with eighteen people standing around her bed.

Sam snorted. "Right. And why exactly would she want to wake up with a brother who has ignored her for most of her life beside her bed?"

"Oh, yeah." Reid snapped. "And she has known you guys for _so_ long, right?"

Sam took a step forward, and Reid did the same. Before they could start a fight, Caleb and Abe jumped forward.

"Quit it." Caleb told the boys, while he grabbed Reid by the shoulder. Abe did the same with Sam. Before he could start his usual speech about fighting, the doorbell rang.

Tyler opened the door, and returned with Reid's father.

"Where is she?" He asked worried, and Caleb pointed to the stairs.

"She's in her room. Pogue's with her." Mr. Garwin nodded.

"And why did you call me, instead of taking her to a hospital?" He asked the children, addressing the three boys he knew.

Their eyes darkened. "Because her parents are selfish bastards." Reid mumbled. Tyler sighed.

"And because she didn't want to go there." Mr. Garwin nodded and headed upstairs.

"Third door from the right!" Tyler called after him. Then he turned to his friends.

"We have to find who did this to her." The others nodded. Caleb sighed.

"I don't think we're going to figure that out, not until Rachel tells us." He turned to the Boston kids. "Thanks for helping. You're welcome to stay here, if you want." He offered. They shared a look, before Abe shook his head.

"Don't thank us. She's our friend. We'd like to stay, but most of us have to work tomorrow. We'd better go home. But thanks anyway." Six of the others nodded. Only Simon, Mark, Max and Lizzy hesitated. They knew they couldn't really miss school but they didn't want to leave Rachel either.

Finally Max turned to Simon. "Mark and I are going home. You stay here with Lizzy." Simon and Lizzy nodded thankfully, but Max didn't look so happy.

"Hey! I wanna stay too!" His two brothers rolled their eyes.

"Forget it, Mark. You're gonna get expelled if you skip school again." Max answered his brother, as he grabbed him by his neck and pulled him outside. Tyler grinned.

"It sucks to be the youngest."

"You speak form experience." Reid grinned. Tyler punched him, as Caleb turned to Lizzy and Simon.

"Come on, let's find you two a room. We have some clothes here, if you want to borrow."

Lizzy raised her eyebrows. "You all have clothes here?"

Caleb laughed. "Yeah, we stayed over at each others places so many times, that we just started to keep clothes everywhere. You can borrow some of Sarah and Kate if you want."

"Hey!" Both girls objected. "Who says you can lend our clothes without asking permission?" Caleb looked at them with a apologizing look. The girls laughed and Sarah turned to Lizzy.

"Come on, let's find you something. Come on, Simon. We'll steel something of Caleb for you." The four headed upstairs, leaving the three boys alone.

Tyler noticed that no one really laughed. They made jokes, but it was clear that no one was really happy.

"So what do we do now?" Reid asked his friends. They shook their heads.

"I have no idea." Caleb admitted.

* * *

I want to thank everyone who reviewed. Apparently, you readers like the dark chapters better then the happy ones, not that the others where really happy. I hope everyone liked this chapter. And please: Can someone help me figure out a name for the band?


	7. Chapter 7

**This chapter is a bit dark again. It's Rachel's POV, though I used third POV this time. It's really short, compared to my other chapters, but it actually just is an extra chapter. The next one will be up around Friday. **

**I hope you like it. Please review.**

**The text at the beginning is one of my poems, that I'll probably update soon at , if you want to read it, the link to my account is on my profile. I'll probably upload it tomorrow or something.**

**

* * *

**

**IT**

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* * *

**

_Wars have been fought, lives have been saved_

_The light has won, the darkness caved_

_But despite all the fights that have been won_

_The fight with hate and pain is never done._

_

* * *

_

She had closed the curtains, turned of all the lights and now she sat in the corner of her room, shaking because of the cold. But she still refused to grab a blanket, or anything else that would make things more comfortable for her.

"_You're disgusting!"_

Rachel sobbed softly, before reminding herself that she didn't deserve that kind of release. Because Aaron had been right: She was disgusting.

She pulled her knees up to her chest, and then put her arms around them to keep them there. It hurt, but she didn't care.

She shouldn't care.

"_You're a bitch! An ungrateful whore!" _

This time it was Brody's voice that made her cry again, despite her previous decision not to do that anymore.

_All my fault. All my fault. _

Rachel heard a sound and her head flew up, frantically looking around the room for the cause. Finally she realized it was just a door that slammed close, somewhere far away.

Her eyes fell on the dinner tray a few feet away. Rachel had sworn to herself that she wouldn't eat anymore, that she wouldn't drink. Starvation was a terrible death, she knew, and so it was the only sort of thing she deserved.

_All my fault. All my fault._

Pogue had been in with her for a few hours, trying to make her talk, trying to make her eat. But she had ignored him, simply staring to a spot behind him, pretending not to see him.

_It's the only way._

It was the only way to make him walk away, the only way his life could be okay. He had to learn that she was no one, nothing but a thing that landed in his life. But she, no: it, wasn't supposed to be there. So it would have to leave, and he would have to learn to live without it.

Rachel wiped her tears away, after which pushed her nails into her skin. She shouldn't cry.

Her door opened and Rachel's eyes flew up again, meeting Pogue's.

"Hey." He whispered softly, not realizing how he broke Rachel's heart. He shouldn't have to talk like that, he should have been happy, like he was before they started to talk.

She looked at her arm. Her nails had went so deep that you could see small wounds on it. Pogue gasped and fell down on his knees beside her, taking her arm.

"Rach! Have you done this?" He asked shocked. Rachel whimpered because of his touch. She was mad at herself for hurting Pogue like this.

His arms went around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him. He softly stroked her hair and she could feel his tears fall on her.

"Oh, Rachel." He whispered softly. "Why won't you talk to me?"

Rachel froze, and remained frozen for the next hour. Finally, Pogue left. In the door opening he turned around to her, and for one second she was scared he would decide to stay.

"Do you want me to sent Simon in?" He asked her. He tried to use his normal friendly tone, but his eyes betrayed his worry. Rachel shook her head once, using the smallest movement possible. Pogue left.

Rachel leaned her head against the wall, furious at herself. Even when she tried to solve everything by leaving, in the only way she could think of, she still managed to hurt him. And then she realized how hard it must be for him to watch her dying like this. Again she pinched herself with her nails, pushing them even harder this time.

Her eyes fell on the dinner tray again, but this time she didn't see the dinner. Instead, she saw the small knife beside it. She crawled forward and grabbed it of the tray, before quickly crawling back to her corner.

She looked at the knife, seeing a part of her reflection in it.

_You're so ugly! How can one person be so fat?_

Riley's voice entered her mind, right before she put the knife on her left wrist. Rachel put pressure on it, trying the best she could to break through her skin.

It worked. She watched with a morbid pleasure how the blood streamed down her wrist.

_Not fast enough!_

Rachel took the knife in her left hand and started to work on her right wrist.

"Rachel? Rachel, I'm coming in, okay?" The voice sounded far away, so far away. She faintly recognized it as Simon's, but she didn't really care.

_Nothing matters any longer._

The soft voice in her mind told her. Rachel smiled softly to herself.

_It's all over now… They can live in peace again!_

Her door opened, and Rachel heard a voice call her name.

"Rachel! O, no, please no! Rachel, come on, stay with me! POGUE! Please Rachel, I need you… You can't leave…POGUE! CALL AN AMBULANCE."

New voices joined the first one, but their words just didn't make sense. It was like they were pleading for her to stay, like they actually didn't want her to go.

_Am I in heaven? _Rachel started to wonder, before ruling out that thought. _No, no heaven for me. Just hell. Is there a thing like hell? _

Suddenly Pogue's voice stood out from all the others.

"Rachel…please, Rach, stay awake…I need you… I love you." Soft tears touched her skin, and just when Rachel started to wonder when she would finally die, the blackness took her world over.


	8. Chapter 8

**When nightmares become reality**

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* * *

**

_If you're lost, just find a way_

_If you lost hope, wait for a new day_

_If all seems broken far beyond repair, _

_Look past the shadows, you'll find me there._

_-MariaC-_

_

* * *

_

Pogue laid on the couch, using Kate's lap as his pillow. She softly stroke his hair, as tried to forget the memory about his sister as she hid in the corner of her room. He had tried to make her eat, but she refused. He had tried to make her drink, she simply ignored him. He knew that he couldn't understand how she felt, but he just wished she would talk to him, or even just look at him.

"Can I please go up now?" Simon asked for the umpteenth time that day. Pogue shook his head.

"She doesn't want to see you. I asked." Simon rolled his eyes.

"Seriously, Pogue. If we keep doing things her way, she'll die! She's not eating, we can't just let her go on like this. Please, let me talk to her!" He begged him.

"Pogue…" Kate whispered softly to him, using that tone that made him want to do whatever she asked. But still…

"Fine." He muttered finally. "But if she gets scared, or starts to cry or shows in any other way she doesn't want you there, you leave, got it?" He continued, using his threatening tone. Simon nodded quickly and sprinted towards the stairs. Pogue watched him disappear.

For a while he laid motionless on the couch, feeling to tired to move. Then he heard Simon's voice call his name from upstairs.

"Pogue!" There was a short pause, in which Pogue jumped up, scared about what Simon had done. "Pogue! Call an ambulance."

Pogue froze as his brain started to comprehend the meaning of those words.

_No…Rachel!_

Then he ran upstairs, to his little sister's room.

In moments of panic, people usually make mistakes. Mistakes they will regret for the rest of their lives. As Pogue barged into his sister's room, he realised he had made one of those mistakes. He should have followed Simon's advice, he should have called an ambulance.

But instead he fell down on his knees beside Rachel, shaking her, trying to wake her up. Because she had to be asleep, there was no other option. The blood around her didn't mean anything.

It couldn't mean anything, Rachel couldn't be gone…Pogue needed her.

Pogue started to cry as he pulled his sister to his chest, cradling her in his arms.

"Rachel…please, Rach, stay awake…I need you… I love you." He whispered softly.

"Pogue! Let her go!" Simon called out, but Pogue didn't hear him. Simon pushed him aside, and Pogue fell. Unable to get up again he simply staid there on the ground, pulling his knees against his chest.

"Rachel! Rachel, I need you….Don't go!" He whispered to the air around him. Simon ignored the boy, instead pushing the blanket he had pulled off of Rachel's bed against her arms, trying to stop the bleeding.

"I called an ambulance." Kate's voice sounded from the door opening. Simon didn't look up. Then Kate noticed her boyfriend and she fell down on her knees beside him.

"He's in shock!" She cried out to Simon, who couldn't care less. But he realized that he would need Pogue's help later on, so he sighed.

"Take this over for a sec, okay, Kate?" He asked her in the calmest voice he could manage. Which wasn't very calm.

Kate quickly took over his job of applying pressure to the wounds, giving Simon the time to deal with Pogue.

While Kate had tried to wake him up using sweet and begging words, Simon used a more direct approach.

Kate looked up when she heard to sound of someone's fist meeting someone's face.

"Simon!" She called out. Simon ignored her, preparing himself for another blow to Pogue's face.

He was slightly disappointed when it turned out to be no longer necessary. Pogue blinked. For a second he looked confused, until his eyes fell on Rachel.

"Rach!" He whispered as he hurried to her side again. Simon followed his example, quickly taking his last task back from Kate.

When the bell rang, Kate jumped up and ran down. A few seconds the later three paramedics ran into the room. Simon and Pogue quickly jumped back to let them do their job.

The paramedics didn't waste any time by telling Pogue, Simon and Kate what they were doing. Instead they simply strapped her down on the stretcher, after which two of them carried her down. The third turned back to the scared teenagers.

"Is anyone of you family?" He asked them. Pogue nodded.

"I'm her brother." He answered softly. The paramedic nodded.

"Okay. From what I saw, she's gonna make it. You guys did a good job with stopping the blood." Pogue sighed in relief, as did Simon and Kate. But the paramedic wasn't done yet.

"If you want, you can ride with the ambulance. But there will be some people at the hospital with questions. Where are your parents?" Pogue frowned.

"In Europe, or something." He muttered. The paramedic nodded.

"Okay. I'll get the hospital to call her. Now, come one. We'd better leave." Then he turned to Kate and Simon. "If you want, you can come to the hospital to. I can't make any promises about visiting, though." Then he turned around and left the room, quickly followed by Pogue.

* * *

"Dad?" Pogue whispered into his phone. He sat at a bench near the fountain outside the hospital.

"Pogue? What's wrong, son?" Chris Parry asked his son with worry in his voice. Pogue swallowed his tears.

"It's Rach, dad. She's in the hospital." For a second, Chris was silent. Then he sighed.

"Great. What has she done now? Never mind, just tell the doctors to do what needs to be done and to send me the bill. Anything else?" Pogue tried his hardest not to scream to loud. He partially succeeded.

"Rachel's in the hospital because she tried to kill herself! But hey, why would you care, right? I mean, it's not like you ever cared about her. You're probably the biggest cause of all this. Well, sorry to disappoint you, dad, but she didn't succeed. So if you would please come her to take care of your daughter, that would be great." Pogue hung up the phone, before running back into the hospital.

"What did they say?" Caleb asked as soon as he saw his friend. Simon had went to Boston a while ago, to explain to his friends what had happened, leaving the four brothers to look after Rachel.

Pogue fell down on the chair beside Rachel's bed.

"To send them the bill." He hissed. Tyler and Reid shared a shocked look, while Caleb simply nodded with a sad look. He had already expected that sort of response, but he still had hoped to be wrong.

At that moment Rachel started to stir. Pogue quickly looked at his friends.

"You'd better get out. She's probably not gonna like a full room." Reid and Caleb nodded, before quickly walking out of the room. Tyler hesitated in the door opening. Pogue saw him standing there and sighed softly. Then he beckoned him inside with a small movement of his head. Tyler smiled for a second, before taking his position at Rachel's left hand. He took it in his, just as she opened her eyes.

For a second she just looked confused as her eyes explored the room, flying over Tyler and Pogue as if they didn't even exist.

"Rachel?" Pogue asked carefully, scared of her reaction to his voice. Her eyes met his, and she mouthed his name, clearly confused.

Pogue felt the tears appear in his eyes, but he didn't try to hide them.

"Why?" He whispered softly. "Why did you do that?" Rachel lowered her eyes. Pogue looked at Tyler, begging him to take over, feeling so helpless. Tyler nodded softly to him and Pogue stood up and left. Tyler walked around the bed and sat down on the now empty chair. Then he raised his hand and softly moved Rachel's chin up, until their eyes met.

"Do you know how much we love you?" He asked her, hoping a direct approach would work. Rachel looked confused, so Tyler answered his own question.

"No. No, you don't. And I don't know why you don't know that, but I know it's probably our fault. So let me tell you a story, Rachel." Rachel laid her head against the pillow, but kept her gaze locked on Tyler's. His eyes wouldn't let her go. Then he started his story.

"Once there was a beautiful girl. She was sixteen year old, and had everything a girl could wish for. She just missed one thing. Love. Her parents loved her older brother, but forgot about her. And so did the brother. Until one day he woke up, and suddenly realized how much he had hurt his sister, and from that moment he tried anything to make up for his mistakes. And she gave him a change, because she loved him. But still she couldn't completely forgive him.

And then, one day. She disappeared. Her brother didn't know what to do, but tried anything in his power to find her. But when he finally did, she was already broken. And he didn't know how to fix her.

The first two days after her return, he barely slept. Instead he spent his entire night at her side, holding her as she cried in her sleep, during her nightmares. Until she pushed him away. She didn't speak to him, but she made it clear she didn't want to see him. And he knew she was right, realizing that was his punishment for all the pain he had caused her. But she refused to talk to anyone, as she refused to eat or to drink. And her brother, and all her friends, feared for her life, because they realized that she was slowly killing herself.

They begged her to eat and drink again, to speak to them, but she ignored them all. Until she suddenly decided that it was enough, and she tried to kill herself."

Rachel was crying, but still Tyler wouldn't release her eyes, holding them with his own.

"For a long time, she was unconscious, and her brother could only cry. But when she finally awoke, she still didn't realize just how much her brother loved her, unable to see how scared everyone had been during her sleep. Unable to hear their prays to let her live."

Tyler raised his hand again and softly stroke her cheek.

"We love you, Rachel, and we always have, although we might have forgotten about that at some points. And I don't care what everyone else says, we will always love you. And when I say we, I don't just mean Pogue, Caleb, Reid and I, because I know that Simon, his brothers and their friends also love you very much. As do Kate and Sarah. So please, Rachel, please promise me you won't do something like this ever again."

Rachel didn't answer. Instead she fell against his chest, crying as he held her in his arms, soothing her with soft words.

Suddenly Rachel pulled Tyler's shirt. He looked down at her, as she pulled away from him. Her hands made a movement in the air, as if she was writing something. Tyler immediately understood, and he started to search his pockets. Finally, he found it, and he pulled out a notebook and a pen, handing it to Rachel.

She started to write, and then showed it to him.

'_You're wrong.'_

It said. Tyler lifted his eyebrow.

"About what?" Rachel started to write again.

'_About me not talking to Pogue because I was mad at him.'_

"Then why? Why did you ignore him?" Rachel's tears touched the paper as she wrote down the new message.

'_Because he's better of without me. He's better of without a little sister who's clinging to him wherever he goes.' _

Tyler's eyes widened as he saw the paper. Then pulled Rachel back into his arms.

"That's not true, Rachel, and you know it. I'm just gonna say this one more time: Pogue loves you. You didn't see how broken he was when you wouldn't talk to him, or when he thought you were dying." He felt Rachel's tears wetting his shirt, but he didn't care, only puling her closer.

"Why won't you talk now?" He whispered into her ear. She pulled back, and started to scrabble in Tyler's notebook again.

'_I can't. It hurts.' _

Tyler frowned worried. Although he knew she wasn't telling the whole story, he decided to focus on this part first. "Your throat, you mean?" She nodded.

He looked her in the eyes. "Will you let me call a doctor so he can check it out?" She hesitated. Then wrote in the notebook again.

'_You'll stay?'_

Tyler send her a reassuring smile and nodded.

"I'll stay as long as you want." He promised her, and she smiled softly. Then she nodded.

* * *

"I'm afraid I have a some bad news." The doctor told the waiting group the next day. Pogue and Tyler had stayed in the hospital with Rachel, while Reid and Caleb had just gotten in. Now all five where waiting for the doctor to give the results of last days tests.

Tyler sat at the left edge of Rachel's bed, pulling her close to him. Pogue sat at her other side on the chair as he held her hand in his, stroking it to calm her rapidly beating heart.

Rachel laid her head against Tyler's chest and then softly nodded to the doctor, silently telling him to give the results. The man sighed, and just when he was about to answer, the door behind him opened. Every eye in the room flew to it as Dan Garwin entered the room. He smiled apologizing.

"Since her parents weren't able to make it, they asked me to make the decisions." He quickly explained. "And I'm sorry I'm late, one of my patients had a problem." He gave Rachel a quick kiss on her forehead, before moving to stand beside his son. The doctor nodded softly, before returning his gaze to Rachel. It was clear that he didn't really feel comfortable, telling his news to such a big group. He coughed.

"Well, first I want to say that we can't just let you go after your… attempt. There has to be someone with you every second of the day, alright?" Rachel nodded, as Dan started to get worried. He knew all to well that doctor's had the tendency to stall hard news. And using a message like this to stall something, couldn't mean anything good. The doctor continued.

"Good. Then the other matters. I'm afraid your throat is seriously damaged. There is a change that we can solve that with surgery, but that could be dangerous. There is a change that you'll never be able to speak again."

**I think I'm spoiling you guys to much, I'm updating way to much these days **

**But then again, who cares. I hope you liked this chapter, and please review!**

**Oh, and I did upload the poem in the last chapter (and the beginning of this one). It's called For the lost ones. You can find a link on my account. Check it out and tell me whether you liked it or not, and if you want me to right a verse of a poem at the beginning of every chapter from now on.**

**Oh: And this disclaimer (for this entire story): I don't own The Covenant, I only own my OC's (meaning the Dance Crew, Band and Rachel) Oh, and I own the names of Mr. Parry and Mr. Garwin, so in short: I own everything that wasn't named in the movie. **

**And last: I'm working on a one-shot (that's actually gonna stay a one-shot, instead of Another point of view), it's called What if. I'll update that one someday soon, though I am a bit busy these days. (I hate school, who's with me?)**


	9. Chapter 9

_The children are still playing_

_And the love's never really gone_

_So in this poem I'm just saying:_

_There's always a reason to go on._

_ - MariaC_

**_What's lost will be found_**

**_

* * *

_**

The doctor had tried to convince me to go for another round of tests and to… well, sort of talk, with the police. They wanted to know why I tried to kill myself. I had simply ignored him, not ready to do anything yet. Finally Dan had managed to get him to leave me alone, in a way that was barely legal. The doctor had looked a bit shocked as he ran out of the room.

I looked at the four boys around me, suddenly realizing that Tyler was right. I had changed everything by ending up in the hospital.

Pogue, the guy who normally was the cool one, who looked like he couldn't care less about everything, now was nearly crying as he held me in his arms.

Tyler always had been the calm one, staying in the background and hardly saying anything. Now he hadn't left my side and kept telling me that it would be okay.

Caleb, who always was the composed one, the one who thought about every move before making it, now looked helpless and lost.

Reid was the fighter of the four, always ready to punch some sense into anyone who crossed one of them. Now, I could still see the anger in his eyes, but there was more. You could almost describe his look as scared. But I couldn't believe that, because Reid Garwin, the player of Spencer, didn't do scared.

"Does anyone want anything to drink?" Dan suddenly asked. Everyone immediately looked at me, making me look down to avoid their gaze.

"I'd like a cola, please." Tyler finally said, saving me. Pogue nodded.

"Me too." Reid was about to open his mouth when Dan turned to him.

"Reid, how about you come with me. I need some one to help me carry it all. Caleb, you're coming?" It was a pathetic excuse to get them out of the room, but I was thankful for it. I felt like I was suffocating with all these people in here.

"Yeah, sure." Caleb quickly said, almost dragging Reid out of the door. Tyler and Pogue laughed softly at Reid's angry face. Dan followed them slightly amused.

As soon as Dan had closed the door behind him, Pogue and Tyler turned to me again. I started fidgeting with the blankets, trying my hardest to avoid their eyes.

"Rachel." Tyler said softly. "Rachel, please look at me. We need to talk." Tyler lost a few points in my mind. I didn't _need_ to talk about it, I didn't _want_ to talk about. I just wanted to close my eyes, fall asleep and never wake up again.

And then I realized where my thoughts were leading me. Back into the oblivion where I had been before. And I had promised Tyler I wouldn't go there anymore, that I wouldn't ever do something like that again.

_You didn't promise anything._

A voice in my mind reminded me. And it was true: I hadn't promised anything, I had avoided the question.

I pulled my legs up against my chest, trying to back away in my bed as far as possible. I ignored the voices of Tyler and Pogue as I tried to run away to the nothing I had been before.

But I couldn't.

I kept seeing their faces when they heard the news about my voice. And my mind kept making up their tears that would fall down on my grave if I'd die.

I didn't realize that I was crying until Pogue wiped my tears away.

"Rach…" He whispered softly. "Please, Rach. Just ta…" I knew what he wanted to say: Just talk to me. But I couldn't do that anymore. Pogue looked at Tyler, begging him for help. And Tyler walked forward, took my chin in his hand and moved my head up until I looked him straight in the eye.

"Rachel." He said in a warning voice. "You remember what I said before, don't you?" I nodded softly, suddenly feeling like a child that had stolen a cookie. Tyler nodded back to me.

"Good. Then you remember when I said we loved you. Listen to me Rachel: There are thousands of people who can't talk. That's not the end of the world. So stop talking yourself back into yourself. Write it. Write what you feel, what you think. Come on, Rachel. We can help you." He didn't plead like Pogue did. Instead he simply told me what I had to do, making me see that I had no choice.

I extended my hand, causing Pogue to frown. But Tyler immediately understood. He grinned as he took out his notebook again and handed it to me. I smiled softly at him and then started to write.

_What do I say?_

I asked them. Pogue grinned.

"What do you want to do about your voice? We can help you, you know. Or you could do the surgery." I thought about it for a second, searching for what I was feeling. Of course, I knew what I wanted, but I wasn't sure why I wanted it.

_I don't want to do anything. I hate the idea of surgery, especially in my throat. And I don't want you to waste your life on something like this._

Rachel had to stop herself from writing down 'on someone like me'. She had decided to stop her self-pity, and not thinking depressive thoughts was the start.

Pogue frowned when he saw the message, but Tyler nodded softly.

"We understand. Though we would be happy to do it." He told her with a small smile. I smiled back at him, glad that he understood.

Suddenly Tyler turned to Pogue with a warning look in his eyes. I frowned, following the exchange with worry. I knew that they were having a mind conversation, and it was annoying.

_What?_

I wrote down. Tyler quickly shook his head.

"Nothing, it's nothing. Just forget about it." He told me, trying to sound reassuring. I glared at him. I wanted to know what was going on.

"Tyler…" Pogue whispered. "We need to know." It wasn't really like he was trying not to make me hear it, but more to make it clear that I wasn't a part of that conversation. I waited, slightly annoyed, till someone would say the question out loud. Mean while, my mind started to think about the possibilities.

It was something they needed to know, something that Tyler didn't want to ask. No, not didn't want to, something he refused to ask. Then Pogue turned to me.

"Rachel, we need to know." He whispered softly, almost sounding apologizing. I looked at him, not fully understanding but also scared. And I suddenly wasn't so sure I wanted to know anymore. "Who did this?" I froze.

Those three words were enough to cause a full-blown panic attack. I curled up in a ball again, and beside me I could faintly hear the machines I was hooked on starting to beep.

I could hear Tyler as he screamed my brother's name in anger, and then I felt his arms around me. He stroke my hair, holding me close to him as he whispered shooting words into my ear.

"Sir, please move." A voice told Tyler, but I held on to him, not ready to let him go. Because I feared that he would leave if I would let him go.

"Sir…" The voice started again, but Tyler ignored it.

"Shhh…" He whispered to me. "Shhh. It's okay Rachel, it's okay. You're save her. I'm here. You're okay."

Slowly I started to calm down again, until a second voice joined Tyler's. This voice was louder, nearly screaming into my ear, drowning Tyler's voice out.

_If you ever tell someone about this, I promise you that you will die. You hear me? I will torture you to death, you and every single one of your 'friends'._

The voice flew through my head, over and over again, and I started sobbing without making a sound.

I wanted to beg Tyler to make it go away, but I couldn't.

_You're disgusting. Bitch. You're so ugly._

Two other voices entered my head. And I recognized them. And then the beeping noise beside me started to fade. The voices started to lower, and I could hear Tyler again.

"…Okay. You're okay. Just calm down." He whispered, and that was the last thing I heard before all went black.

* * *

When I woke up again, I had a splitting headache and a sore throat. I slowly opened my eyes, only to see Pogue and Tyler sitting beside me. They were both asleep, laying with their heads on my bed. And both of them were holding my hand. I softly tried to pull them loose, because I needed to move, but I didn't want to wake them. It was unsuccessful.

"Rachel?" Pogue's sleepy voice sounded. He sighed in relief. "Thank god." He muttered softly. I couldn't help but smile as he hugged me and kissed me on my forehead. After that it was Tyler's turn, who gave me the same greeting.

"How're you feeling?" Pogue asked worried. I smiled at him and extended my hand. Pogue handed me a new notebook and a matching pen. He grinned softly.

"We thought that Tyler would need his own, so Reid and Caleb bought these in the gift shop. So tell me, how do you feel?" I smiled as I started to write.

_Fine._

Pogue lifted his eyebrow. "Sure you do. So tell me, when was the last time you ate?" I shrugged. I wasn't even sure what day it was. Pogue rolled his eyes. "You hungry?" He asked. And of course, I then started to realize just how much I needed some food. I nodded and Tyler stood up.

"I'll be right back." He told me as he gave me a quick kiss on the forehead. I smiled at him as he walked out of the room. Pogue moved a bit closer.

"You're happy today." He determined. I nodded happily, causing him to laugh.

"That's good. So, if you manage to be panic attack-free for the next two days, we can get you out of here." I started to smile, but then his full sentence entered my mind.

_Panic attack-free_

_Panic attack_

_Who?_

My mind leaded me away from the world again, and I felt myself starting to shake again. Pogue's eyes widened. Then he pulled me into his arms, trying to sooth me.

Luckily for him, my attack wasn't as bad as before, and I actually managed to calm down rather quickly. Meaning, before freaking out the machines.

And when I finally was able to breath normally again, I made a decision. I didn't care what they had said or done, I wanted to live again. I slowly pulled back from Pogue and started to write again, ignoring his confused look. It didn't take me long, there were only three words needed.

Then I dropped my pen on the blankets and ripped out the paper, handing it to Pogue. He looked at it, still confused. Then his eyes started to widen.

I looked down at the blankets, not sure how he would react. And I was in his arms. He held me tight as I started to sob. Pogue kept swaying softly as he stroke my hair.

"It's gonna be okay." He whispered the promise in my ear. "They are never gonna touch you again. I promise."

We both looked up when the door opened. Tyler came in, and froze on the doorstep. He hesitated, until I beckoned him in with a soft movement of my head. As Tyler walked to the bed, Pogue helped me to sit up right so I could eat. Tyler placed the tray on my legs and I looked at it.

Two pieces of toast with a small egg. It actually looked eatable, so I guess not all the stories about hospital food are right.

Or maybe they are, I second-guessed after I took a bite. I winced as I tried to swallow the bite as fast as possible. Tyler laughed.

"How about I ask my mom to bring something next time? She doest it all the time for my dad." He suggested. I put my left thumb in the air, using my right hand to take another bite of my toast.

_Seriously, what could someone ruin about toast? _

I listened to Pogue and Tyler as they softly talked to me. Tyler took my tray away as soon as I was done eating and then Pogue helped me to lay down. They stayed by my side, talking to me, until I finally fell asleep.

And I had to admit, life actually looked pretty good at that moment.

* * *

**Third person POV**

**

* * *

**

Pogue managed to keep his cool until his sister was asleep. But when he was finally sure that she wouldn't notice him leaving, he jumped up and walked to the door, beckoning Tyler to follow him. The younger boy followed his instruction curiously.

In the hallway, Pogue found Caleb and Reid waiting for Rachel's door. He realized that Reid's father had to go back to work.

"What's wrong?" Caleb asked worried as he saw his friends furious face.

Pogue handed him the note his sister had given him before, and then started to pace in front of Rachel's room.

Caleb looked at the note. "Aaron Riley Bordy? What does that mean?" He asked worried. Tyler's eyes widened as he connected the dots. Pogue explained it.

"That's the answer I got when I asked her who had done it." He hissed. Caleb froze while Reid jumped up and started to walk away. Luckily, Tyler knew him well enough to be able to predict his reaction. The boy ran after his friend and pulled him back.

"Wait, Reid." He told him. "We need to think before we do anything." Pogue cursed.

"What do you mean? What's there to think about? I say we go to them and show them not to mess with Rachel anymore!" Caleb shook his head.

"No, Tyler's right. If we hurt them, their lawyers are gonna use that against us in court. That way, it's possible that they might walk free. Plus, if we hurt him he's gonna take his revenge on Rachel. And we can't protect her twenty-four-seven." Reid cursed.

"So we need evidence…" Tyler muttered softly. Pogue glared at him.

"What? Are you saying Rachel might be lying?" He hissed as he took a step towards Tyler. Caleb sighed softly as he pulled his friend back.

"Cool it, Pogue. Simply because Rachel says they did it, doesn't mean we can get them behind bars. I'll my father's lawyer, he's the best. Meanwhile, you guys go back to Rachel. Keep her busy, okay? I'm gonna see what I can do about Aaron and his groupies." Reid and Tyler nodded, quickly walking back to Rachel. Pogue hesitated.

"You do think we can get them, right, Caleb?" He asked worried. Caleb looked at his friend and nodded.

"Not a doubt. If we can't get them the legal way, we'll use other ways to keep Rachel safe." He promised him. Pogue nodded relieved and walked into his sister's room again.

* * *

**Again, a short chapter, but I had little time these days. The next chapter will be up next Friday.**

**Please Review and check out the One-Shot I posted: What if...  
**


	10. Chapter 10

_Whenever you need me, I'll be here_

_I promise I will never disappear_

_When you're scared, I'll hold your hand_

_With you I will for ever withstand._

_-MariaC_

_

* * *

_**When you need a friend**

**

* * *

**

_You come to me with scars on your wrist  
You tell me this will be the last night feeling like this  
I just came to say goodbye  
I didn't want you to see me cry, I'm fine  
But I know it's a lie._

I closed my eyes as I listened to the song. I knew that Reid, who laid beside her on the bed, would probably think it was funny that someone listened to music that way, but I ignored him.

Really, I loved the guys, but I hated the whole suicide watch. It would be nice to have a small minute alone.

Though, I had to admit that Reid was pretty cool about it. Pogue just kept looking at me like I was about to jump out of a window or something, while Tyler had been acting very weird since I had left the hospital two days ago. It was like he couldn't talk to me except for when I was laying in a hospital bed. And Caleb didn't have a clue how to talk to me. He figured that, when he was watching me, that meant that he was supposed to keep me busy too. And that was just annoying.

And besides, Pogue and Caleb both had a girlfriend they should spent time with. I didn't want to take that away from them. So that only left Reid, who was actually pretty cool when he wasn't trying to impress everyone (meaning the hot girls).

He was content just laying beside me, leaving me to do my own thing. And he didn't jump up whenever I had something sharp in my hand. With him, it more felt like I was hanging out with a friend then as if someone was babysitting me.

At that moment, Reid jumped up and walked to the window. Then he started to smirk, that mischievous smirk that he was famous for, and that always worried Caleb. When he saw my confused expression, he explained.

"I suddenly remembered the tree house that we built years ago. It's still there. Wonder if we could still get there." I silently laughed and nodded. Then I jumped up and turned my radio off, before walking to the window, that I quickly opened.

Reid lifted his eyebrow.

"If you're planning on jumping down, Caleb says I'm supposed to stop you." I rolled my eyes and smacked his shoulder. Then I jumped out of the window, quickly grabbing hold of the closest branch and hoisting myself on it. A quick glance across my shoulder told me that Reid was now officially worried. I beckoned him to follow me, and he did. Slowly.

I rolled my eyes again, before continuing my climb through the tree. When I reached the tree house, I quickly jumped in through the window, not feeling like walking to the door that was on the other side.

A few seconds later, Reid entered as well, in the same way as I had done. He grinned at me.

"I have to admit, that was cool. So why exactly did you do that before?" I smirked at him, imitating his own trademark and took my notebook out of my pocket.

_Whenever I wanted to get out, but I was grounded._ Reid nodded thoughtfully.

"So where did you go when you wanted to get out?" I shrugged.

_Just running. I always run from five to seven at Saturday._

Now Reid really looked surprised. "Today is Saturday, you know." He replied. "If you had told me you wanted to run, I would have come with you."

I shrugged, pretending like it was no big deal. And, well, it really wasn't. I mean, it was just running, right?

But I knew that wasn't true. I ran every Saturday morning, it was just a habit that I had developed years ago. It pretty much was a part of me.

Reid looked at me, with a thoughtful expression, so I looked back with a curious one. I wanted to know what he was thinking.

Then his eyes turned black, and he suddenly had two pair of running shoes in his hand, carrying them by the laces.

"Come on." He simply said. "Let's go for a run." And then I couldn't help but smile.

We quickly pulled on the shoes, before we used the rope to go down. Reid laughed.

"I can't believe that it's all still there." He told me smiling, and I laughed silently again. Reid defiantly was my favorite son at the moment.

"Ah, thank you!" He exclaimed. I looked at him like he was crazy, before I realized what was going on. He was reading my mind.

I froze and glared at him, knowing that would get my message across. He shrugged.

"Sorry, but how else am I supposed to know what you want to say?" He asked innocently. Then he realized what he had just said and froze.

I sat down against the tree and pulled my knees against my chest, feeling the tears streaming down. Again. These past days had been quite emotionally, which meant that the smallest thing would make me cry.

Reid sat down beside me, hugging me with one arm. "I'm sorry Rach." He whispered softly. "I shouldn't have said that. I promise I won't read your mind anymore."

I told myself that I was overreacting, so I wiped my tears away and gave Reid a watery smile. He gently smiled back to me, before jumping up. Then he extended his hand to me.

"Come on, let's go." He said and we started to run.

It had been a while, so it was nice to do again. But I was surprised that Reid could easily keep up with me. Then I remembered that Pogue had once said that Reid always ran to keep in good shape for swimming.

We ran side to side in silence. I didn't really think about where we were heading. Reid, however, did. He suddenly took my hand and pulled me to a small road, straight through the forest. It was the kind of route I would never take when I was alone, because no girl should run through a forest alone, early in the morning. With Reid, however, I didn't have to worry. So I followed him.

And then I saw where we were going, and I smiled. We had reached the Dells. Reid guided me to the cliff the guys always jumped off whenever they went to a party. We looked out over the beach and the sea, and I smiled softly. It seemed so perfect.

I sat down on the edge, and Reid took place beside me. He put one arm around me, and I rested my head against his shoulder. And so we just sat there in silence, simply enjoying the view.

And that's were the proverb 'nothing can last forever' comes in.

"Ah, how sweet. Reid Garwin has a girlfriend. Didn't know you did hand-me-downs."

I froze and I felt Reid pulling me closer, giving my hand a soft, reassuring pinch. Then he stood up, pulling me with him. We slowly turned, facing my worst nightmare. Reid took step forward, protectively standing in front of me.

"Go away, Aaron." But Aaron simply laughed and shook his head.

"Nah, I don't think so. It's a free country." Bordy and Riley, who flanked their leader, laughed like the mindless followers they were.

Reid almost growled at them. "Go. Away. Now. Or I'm not responsible for my actions." But Aaron laughed again.

"O yeah?" He asked. "And what are you gonna do? I mean, you didn't do anything before, why would you help the bitch now?" And that was when Reid lost it. He ran forward, punching Aaron straight in the face. Riley and Bordy tried to help their friend, but Reid simply kicked them away, before continuing his work on Aaron. Reid's eyes were black, and I was afraid that Aaron would notice that too.

I wanted to help, really, I did. But I just couldn't move. My body wouldn't listen when my mind told it to do something. And even though I knew that Reid could handle himself perfectly fine without my help, I still felt guilty.

And then Riley had apparently realized that he was no match for Reid. So he turned to me. I wanted to back away, but knew that there was no where to go, since we where still standing on the edge of the cliff.

Riley quickly walked my way and tried to grab me. At the last moment, the feeling in my body returned, and I was able to dodge him. Then I started to run. But at that moment, Bordy had noticed Riley's actions, and he stepped in front of me. Reid saw me there, caught between the two boys, and moved to help me. But at that moment, Aaron charged and kicked Reid's legs from underneath him.

Riley's arms tightened around me, pulling me against his body. I tried to pull away from him, but I couldn't. He was too strong. Bordy stepped in front of me, smirking to me.

"And here we are again." He grinned, before pressing his lips against mine. I heard Reid's angry shout, and the laughs of Aaron and Riley.

"Hey!" A new voice suddenly shouted. Bordy pulled away from me, and turned around. I looked around to, searching for the owner of the voice. And then I saw him.

Chase.

"Let her go!" The boy snapped at Riley. Bordy rolled his eyes.

"Keep moving, Collins. You have no concern with this." Chase just kept on walking, and then punched Bordy straight in the face. The boy fell down, and I was sure that his nose was now broken. Chase turned to Riley, simply lifting his eyebrow to challenge the other boy. Riley released me, and quickly pulled his friend up. Together they ran away, quickly followed by Aaron. Reid ran to me and pulled me in his arms. I cried. He stroke my hair, whispering soothing words into my ear.

After a few minutes, I finally managed to calm down and I pulled back from Reid. My eyes took him in, searching for the injuries that just had to be there. I placed my finger on his split lip, but he simply smiled at me and pushed it away.

"I'm okay." He promised me. Then he turned to Chase, who was waiting beside us, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"Thanks, Chase." He said. Chase smiled.

"Glad I could help." He answered, and then he frowned. "Just wish I could be here sooner." I smiled shyly to him, knowing that was the only way I could thank him, since my hands were still shaking too much to be able to write something. Chase smiled back to me.

"How did you get here? I didn't see any other cars." He then asked. Reid shrugged.

"We were running. What did you do here?" Now it was Chase's turn to shrug.

"O, nothing really. Just walking around, you know. So are you guys gonna run back, or do you need a lift?" Reid looked at me, so I nodded. Reid turned back to Chase and smiled.

"A lift would be nice." And so we walked to Chase's car.

* * *

I knew Reid was worried about me. The whole ride home, I hadn't responded to anything he did or said. Instead, I just sat there, staring out of the window, and trying my best not to think about anything.

Reid startled me by suddenly opening my door. He extended his hand to me.

"Come on, Rachel. We're here." He told me, and I slowly took his hand. He pulled me out of the car. As soon as I stood, he put one arm around me and leaded me towards the house.

Reid guided me upstairs, while Chase went to the living room, probably to tell the others about what had happened.

As soon as we entered my room, Reid closed the door behind me. Then he sat me down on my bed and handed me my laptop. He sat down in front of me.

"Talk to me." He told me softly. I opened my laptop. After a few days of writing down everything I wanted to say, my hands started to hurt. So Reid had bought me a laptop so I could chat with people. It was a lot easier.

_I'm sorry. _I typed, causing Reid to look confused.

"Sorry about what?" I shrugged helplessly.

_I didn't do anything. I just stood there._

And then Reid understood, and he shook his head.

"Rachel, remember how we said that you can't blame everything on yourself? Did you honestly think that anyone on the planet would expect you to attack the people who did that…that did that to you? If anyone should be sorry, it should be me. I shouldn't have started a fight, not with you there."

Now it was my turn to shake my head.

_That's no true! Aaron was provoking you! It wasn't your fault._

Reid smiled softly. "So if it wasn't my fault, then it can't be yours either. How about we just say it was Aaron's fault?" I laughed silently, and nodded.

Reid grinned, and took a pack of cards out of his pocket. "Wanna play?" He suggested. I lifted my eyebrow at him.

_You actually carry a pack of cards with you the whole time?_

He shrugged innocently. "Yeah, why not?" I smiled, and extended my hand. Reid handed me the cards and I started to shuffle.

I wasn't exactly sure what game we were playing. After all, I didn't have a lot of experience with card games. Though, I was pretty sure Reid was cheating, since I didn't believe that there was a game where you were supposed to keep some of the cards in your sleeve. He did hid them pretty well, though.

I looked at the last card in my hand, and threw it on the pile in front of me. Reid grinned.

"Do you even know the rules of this game?" He wondered. I shook my head as my hand flew to my laptop.

_Do you?_

Reid looked quasi shocked. "I'm the king of cards!" He exclaimed. "Of course I know the rules!" I lifted my eyebrow as I leaned forward, pulling on his sleeve. A few cards fell out. Reid looked down at them, and then looked back to me, wearing an innocent puppy look. I rolled my eyes, and then we both laughed.

At that moment, someone knocked on the door. Reid and I looked up at exactly the same time, causing us both to laugh again.

"Come in!" Reid called out, and Pogue opened the door. I gave him a small wave and he smiled to me.

"Everything okay here? We heard some weird yelling." And of course, that made us burst out in laughter again. Pogue smiled.

"What were you doing?" He wondered. Reid held up the cards and Pogue rolled his eyes and looked at me.

"You do realize that Reid can't stand losing and that he always cheats, right?" Pogue asked. I grinned and nodded.

"She does now." Reid answered smiling. "I just won two hundred bucks!" Pogue's eyes widened, and he turned to me again.

"Please tell me you didn't…" I simply smiled and shook my head. Pogue sighed in relief and turned around.

"Alright. Don't kill each other. Oh, and Reid?" Pogue turned back to us again.

"Yeah?"

"Caleb says he's gonna kill you."

"No surprise there." Pogue nodded in agreement, before walking away.

"Want a rematch?" Reid suggested. I rolled my eyes. "I'll take that as a no." He muttered softly, and I put my two thumbs in the air. He smiled and started to gather the cards. I laid down on my back, staring up at the ceiling.

After a while, I felt Reid laying down beside me. He put an arm around me, and I laid my head on his chest, hugging against him.

"Can I read your mind again?" He suddenly asked me. I turned my head in an odd angle, just to be able to look at him. He looked me straight in the eyes, looking curious. And I knew that he was serious. I nodded.

_So what are you thinking?_ Reid's voice entered my mind. I rolled my eyes.

_Why does everyone keep asking that? _He simply laughed.

"Blame Tyler for that. He says we need to know what you are thinking if we want to help you." Reid spoke out loud again. I sighed.

_Listen who's talking. He's the one who has barely spoken a word to me these past days._

I thought it before thinking about it - wait, is that possible? Anyway, you get what I'm saying.

Reid looked at me. He was surprised. "What do you mean? You spent the entire day together yesterday!" He exclaimed. I sighed again.

_Just forget it. It's nothing. _I tried to tell him, but he wouldn't listen and kept staring at me with that 'I'm gonna find out exactly what you mean' look. I rolled my eyes.

_I just listened to some music, he read a book, that's all. The only moments he would look at me was when I went to the window, or did something else that made him think that I was gonna kill myself again. _

Reid just kept looking at me with that look.

_Stop that! _I screamed at him, using my mind. Then, a grin slowly appeared on his face.

"You have a crush! You have a crush on Tyler Simms!" He laughed. My eyes widened.

_I DO NOT! Now, would you please shut up before anyone hears you?_

Reid kept laughing. "Oh, you do. But don't worry, it's sort of cute."

I turned away from, feeling the tears in my eyes appear again. I tried to push them away, but they just kept coming. Reid finally managed to shut up.

"Rach?" He asked softly, and I felt his hand touching my cheek. "Rachel? Are you crying?" I shook my head, but couldn't fool Reid. He turned me again, making me face him.

"Rachel…" He whispered softly. "I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have reacted that way. And don't worry, I'm sure that Tyler likes you too." I shook my head, unable to believe him.

_Then why didn't he say something? He only sees me when I'm in trouble. _

Reid softly shook his head, raising his hand to wipe my tears away. "That's not entirely true, Rach." He whispered to me, using a soft, caring voice that hardly ever appeared with Reid Garwin. "He's just shy. He doesn't know what to say. But he knows how to handle problems, so those are the only times he actually knows what to do. That's why he talks to you at those moments." I looked up at him, suddenly feeling so helpless.

_How do you know that?_

Reid smiled to me, wiping a few strands of my hair out of my face. "Because he is my brother, and my best friend. I always could tell who he liked, sometimes even before he knew it himself. And, besides, that's just the way he always acts around girls he likes." He smiled reassuring to me. "So don't worry. It's gonna be alright."

I smiled softly to him, not entirely convinced, but slightly reassured. Then I leaned back in Reid's embrace, feeling myself relax. My eyes dropped closed.

"I promise…" Reid whispered softly into my ear, just before I completely fell asleep.

* * *

**And the next chapter, slightly sooner then expected. I have a new rule for my stories; I need five reviews before I upload the next chapter. And, as I said in Hidden in the Dark, that's not to be mean. I just need to know what you guys like to read, and what you hate. Otherwise I lose my inspiration. **

**So in this chapter I decided to make Reid more important. I hope you like it. **

**In the next chapter, the dance crew and the band will appear again. I changed the name of the band to Silverton. It was made up by Sstrawburry. So thanks!**

**I hope you like it, and please review. Also, check out the one-shot 'What if'. No one reviewed for that one! If I don't get reviews, I won't write another one-shot again. (I think, I suck at keeping threats :P)  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**Be okay**

**

* * *

**_Open me up and you will see  
I'm a gallery of broken hearts  
I'm beyond repair, let me be  
And give me back my broken parts_

_I just want to know today, know today, know today  
I just want to know something today  
I just want to know today, know today, know today  
Know that maybe I will be ok_

_Be okay- Ingrid Michaelson_

_

* * *

_

I woke up when Reid turned on the radio. And of course, just because he was Reid Garwin, he had to turn it on as loud as possible.

I glared at him. He shrugged innocently.

"What? I happen to like this song!" I lifted my eyebrow.

_I'm a Barbie girl, in the Barbie world  
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!  
you can brush my hair, undress me everywhere  
Imagination, life is your creation  
Come on Barbie, let's go party!_

Reid hummed along with the song, causing me to shake my head, while smiling. Then I scrabbled something in the notebook in my hand and held it up for him to read.

_Crazy_

He laughed, and then extended his hand to me. I lifted my eyebrow again, not sure what he was planning. He rolled his eyes and grabbed my hand. I laughed silently as he pulled me off the bed.

"You can dance, right?" Reid asked grinning. I nodded, not sure where he was going. "Then dance!" He exclaimed. Then he sat down on the bed, looking at me with a huge grin, that I just had to smile about. I nodded to him, and then walked to the radio. There was no way I was gonna dance on Barbie girl. I chose the CD I had made myself, that contained my favourite dance songs.

I grinned to myself as I walked to the middle of the room. Softly I counted to myself, not wanting to screw this up in front of Reid. Then I started to dance, at exactly the right moment. I started of really slow, but got faster in the end.

_So lately, I've been wondering  
Who will be there to take my place  
When I'm gone, you'll need love  
To light the shadows on your face  
If a great wave should fall  
It would fall upon us all  
And between the sand and stone  
Could you make it on your own_

_[Chorus:]  
If I could, then I would  
I'll go wherever you will go  
Way up high or down low  
I'll go wherever you will go_

_And maybe, I'll find out  
The way to make it back someday  
To watch you, to guide you  
Through the darkest of your days  
If a great wave should fall  
It would fall upon us all  
Well I hope there's someone out there  
Who can bring me back to you_

_[Chorus]_

_Runaway with my heart  
Runaway with my hope  
Runaway with my love_

_I know now, just quite how  
My life and love might still go on  
In your heart and your mind  
I'll stay with you for all of time_

_[Chorus]_

_If I could turn back time  
I'll go wherever you will go  
If I could make you mine  
I'll go wherever you will go_

I smiled to myself as the song ended. Reid applauded. "Guess the Boston kids weren't kidding." He laughed. I lifted my eyebrow. Boston kids? Reid truly sucked at making up nicknames.

He saw my face, and shrugged.

"Well, you know who I mean." I smiled and dropped down on the bed. And suddenly I remembered something. I grabbed my notebook and started writing furiously.

_I haven't called them!_

I looked at Reid, feeling myself panicking. They were my friends, they had helped me when I needed there help and I had simply forgotten al about them. Reid rolled his eyes at me.

"Relax, Rach. You had a lot on your mind. I'm sure they'll understand. Just text them, maybe you can invite them over" I thought about that idea for a second. Then I took my phone out of my pocket and started texting Simon. Reid sighed softly.

"You don't really like to waste any time, do you?" I sent him my mega smile and then refocused my attention on my phone again, erasing the message quickly. I had a better idea. And I started typing again.

Reid's phone started to buzz. He took it, and then lifted his eyebrows when he saw who sent it.

_Can we go to Boston tonight?_

When he turned to me, I used my best puppy dog pout on him. And trust me, that one was good.

* * *

"I can't believe I'm doing this." Reid muttered softly as he parked the car. I sent him a quick, triumphant grin, before exiting the car. Reid sighed softly, and then followed my example. I waited for him, and he put one arm around my waist. Then we both walked into the shed.

We were just in time to hear see the rehearsal of the dance-crew. Reid and I simply waited in the dark, watching them dance. When the music stopped, we both applauded and walked forward. Everyone looked at us.

"Rachel!" Lizzie squalled while she ran to me. I smiled happily as we hugged each other. "You're here!" Lizzie screamed. "We missed you so much!" I smiled softly, and then pulled back from her, taking my notebook out of my pocket.

_Missed you guys too!_

I quickly wrote down, and showed it to Lizzie, before the rest of the 'Boston kids' came to greet me. Lizzie grinned.

"You'd better!" She told me. "And I have some amazing news: They finally threw Ivy out of the band!" My eyes widened. Sure, I was glad about that, I hated Ivy, but still; I hadn't expected it. Luckily Will immediately understood what my problem was.

"She was acting like a bitch, as usual, and we finally had enough of it. So Natasha and Lizzy kicked her ass, and then we threw her out." I laughed, looking at the two girls. I lifted my thumbs to them, and they bowed.

"Thank you, thank you."

At that moment, Reid decided to join the conversation.

"Who's Ivy? I don't remember her." Mischa shook her head.

"No, she didn't want to go to Ipswich when…" She quickly glanced at me, scared that she might upset me. I smiled reassuringly at her and she returned the smile. Then she turned back to Reid. "So what are you doing here?"

Reid smiled at her, and then pointed to me. "Dropping of your surprise." Simon grinned widely.

"Thanks, man." Reid shrugged.

"Don't mention it."

Then Mischa grabbed my hand and started pulling me to the dance floor. "Come on! We gotta show Reid what we can do!" I looked back at the others, silently begging for help. Reid smiled.

"She already showed me this morning." I smiled gratefully at him, but he continued. "But I wouldn't mind seeing it again!" My smile changed into a glare, and he laughed.

Mark put an arm around me. "Don't worry, I'm sure you remember." I frowned at him, wondering what song he was gonna chose. Then Max turned on the music. My eyes widened as I recognized the song. Of course I remembered the moves, I was the one who had choreographed this dance. And although I tried to stop it, I started to smile. And then I started to dance, along with the rest of the crew.

_You come to me with scars on your wrist  
You tell me this will be the last night feeling like this  
I just came to say goodbye  
I didn't want you to see me cry, I'm fine  
But I know it's a lie_

_This is the last night you'll spend alone  
Look me in the eyes so I know you know  
I'm everywhere you want me to be  
The last night you'll spend alone  
I'll wrap you in my arms and I won't let go  
I'm everything you need me to be_

_Your parents say everything is your fault  
But they don't know you like I know you  
They don't know you at all  
I'm so sick of when they say  
It's just a phase, you'll be o.k. you're fine  
But I know it's a lie_

_This is the last night you'll spend alone  
Look me in the eyes so I know you know  
I'm everywhere you want me to be  
The last night you'll spend alone  
I'll wrap you in my arms and I won't let go  
I'm everything you need me to be  
The last night away from me_

_The night is so long when everything's wrong  
If you give me your hand  
I will help you hold on  
Tonight, tonight_

_This is the last night you'll spend alone  
Look me in the eyes so I know you know  
I'm everywhere you want me to be  
The last night you'll spend alone  
I'll wrap you in my arms and I won't let go  
I'm everything you need me to be_

_I won't let you say goodbye  
And I'll be your reason why  
The last night away from me  
Away from me  
_

Reid, Will, Lizzie and Mark applauded. Then we all sat down on the ground. Mark sat beside me, and put one arm around me. I leaned into him. Reid grinned at us.

"Don't do anything I'll have to tell your brother!" He advised me. I took my notebook and tossed it in his face, because that was just the best way to express my feelings at the moment. Reid laughed as he tossed it back. I started writing in it, and then handed it to Mark. He read the question.

"We haven't found a new singer yet." He then told me. "We asked Sarah, she's pretty good, but she's too busy with school and stuff. Mischa says she can't do the dance-crew and the band, and that she'll always chose dancing, so we're out of ideas." I frowned.

_That sucks_

Mark looked at my new note for a second, and then grinned. "Yeah, I know. But don't worry about it. We'll figure something out." I smiled softly. And we enjoyed the rest of the night.

* * *

All good things must come to an end. I hate that saying, especially since it's usually right. Like now. My parents were home.

It was Saturday night, and we were all sitting in the living room, watching TV. All of us means the four Sons, their girlfriends and me. Pogue and Reid had just had a popcorn fight, that had changed into a pillow fight when they ran out of popcorn and had ended to be just a normal fight. In the end, Tyler and Caleb had to tear the two apart, since they both had lost the playfulness of the fight. Now, Pogue and Reid both had a few bruises, and were both cracking jokes about the movie we were watching. It was called 300, and it's only funny when you start to scream out all the other movies you recognize.

"Aren't those the Orcs of Lord of the Rings?" Reid asked laughing. We all laughed along.

"Pogue? Sweetheart, are you here?" A voice suddenly called out. We all froze, and turned towards the sound, just as my 'mother' entered the room. She smiled brightly as she noticed her son.

"Pogue! There you…" And then she saw his face, and her smile turned into a shocked look. "Oh, Pogue! What have you done? Has someone attacked you? Who was it? I will call the principal, I'm sure that he…" Pogue interrupted his mother, with a voice as cold as ice.

"I'm fine, _mother_." He hissed venomously. "But it's funny that you worry about a few bruises on me, when you don't give a shit when I tell you that your daughter was raped."

Michelle Parry's eyes flew to me. "Oh." She muttered. "You're here." I suddenly wished that I could disappear into the couch, because I was sure that her hateful eyes actually could kill. Pogue stepped protectively in front of me.

"Reid." He said, without bothering to break away from the stare contest he and Michelle were having. "Will you take Rachel upstairs?"

Reid nodded, and took my hand. "Come on, Rachel." He whispered softly to me, pulling me of the couch. I suddenly felt like I was unable to move, and simply followed Reid as he pulled me after him. Michelle stopped us.

"Actually, I think you should all leave. Rachel and I have to discuss some things." Pogue's eyes started to darken. Literally.

"Take her upstairs. My parents and I need to talk. You can watch the movie in Rachel's room." He hissed, in the most furious tone I've ever heard of him.

Reid put his arm around me, pulling me protectively to his side. It was only then that I realized I was shaking. The others followed us.

When we reached the stairs, I could suddenly hear Pogue screaming.

"You've always hated her! What did she do wrong? She loved you!"

His screams were enough to make me freeze.

"Rachel…" Caleb started softly, trying to get me to move on. I ignored him, and walked back to the door. I wanted to hear this, because it could answer the questions that I always had.

What was wrong with me?

Their voices were too soft to be heard, but I still didn't move. And then my patients was rewarded, in some way. I got the answer I was always waiting for.

"She's a mistake, Pogue!" Chris screamed at his son. "It was a mistake that she was ever born, it was a mistake to keep her! But we couldn't know what the power would do to her, because there had never been anyone like here. So the elders decided that she had to stay. That we had to keep her. And when we finally realized that she didn't posses the power it was already too late! People knew her, and they would start asking questions about her she disappeared."

My legs fell out from underneath me and I fell onto the ground. I felt someone's arms around me, but couldn't bring myself to see who it was. All this time, I had truly been a no one. Just a girl who happened to live there, a girl who they had to keep. Just a responsibility that no one wanted.

"Rachel." I heard Tyler's voice, and I realized that it was him who was holding me. He turned me around and I buried my face in his chest. He gently swayed me in his arms.

"It doesn't matter." He whispered to me. "It doesn't matter what they say, Rachel. Their just assholes. We love you, Pogue loves you. You don't need them. You'll be okay, Rach. I promise." Then suddenly I heard a loud noise coming from the room, like something big just fell on the floor. Caleb cursed and threw the door open. He ran inside, immediately followed by Reid. Tyler gently let go off me, making sure that Sarah and Kate took his place before he followed his friends.

I felt the worry grow in me, so I pushed myself from the ground. Sarah and Kate both took my hand and the three of us entered the room together.

That sight will probably never leave my memory.

The two Parry's were fighting. Physically fighting. Caleb tried to drag them apart, while Reid and Tyler were trying their hardest to hide their smiles.

The fact that both fighters were using on each other didn't really help the situation. The whole room was a mess, and all kind of stuff just flew around the room.

I heard Sarah's gasp beside me, and apparently that sound alerted Michelle, who was just looking shocked without doing anything, of our presence. Her eyes flew towards us, and she noticed me. My eyes widened in fear as she stormed towards me. I took a small step back. Kate and Sarah were now standing near the fight, trying to get Pogue to let his father go.

I was alone.

"You bitch!" Michelle yelled at me. "You destroyed this family! Look! Do you see what you have done? You are the devil!"

Then her hand hit me full in the face and I fell to the ground again. She just kept screaming.

"Say something! You don't even defend yourself! You know it's true, you're nothing but a backstabbing bitch!"

I felt her feet kicking me in the ribs. Once. Then she was pulled away by a furious Reid.

"You keep your hands off of her!" He yelled at her. "And if you would have bothered to listen to Pogue, you would've known she CAN'T SPEAK ANYMORE!" Reid screamed the last words into her face.

Pogue kneeled down beside me, pulling me into his arms. Tyler sat down at the other side of me, simply stroking my back. I cried without making a sound.

Reid stepped back from Michelle as Chris walked towards her, hugging her to him with one arm. Caleb, Sarah, Kate and Reid stepped in front of me, forming a protective shield.

"Rachel's coming with me." Reid told my parents, in a voice that suddenly was completely calm. "You will not come looking for her, and I swear: If I ever see either one of you near her, I will kill you."

I couldn't say for sure whether he meant that or not, but I knew that I would be save with him. Pogue turned to his girlfriend.

"Kate, can you pack a bag for her? Not much, we'll come back later to collect everything else."

Kate nodded, and disappeared, followed by Sarah. Caleb looked at Pogue.

"Are you coming as well? Shall I pack some clothes for you?" Pogue nodded thankfully, and Caleb disappeared as well.

"Pogue…" Michelle Parry begged her son. "Don't go! We love you, honey." Pogue looked at his parents, with eyes as cold as ice again.

"I don't care. I'm leaving to, and you'd better stay away. I hate you." Then he pulled me to my feet, and lifted me up in his arms. He carried me outside bridal style, as I clung to his neck. I felt like he would leave if I'd let him go, like I'd be alone. And I couldn't survive that.

Tyler opened the back door of his car, and Pogue managed to get inside without letting me go. I sat on his lap, burying my face in his shoulders.

"I love you." He whispered softly in my ear. I looked up at him, making sure he could see my mouth before mouthing 'I love you too'. He smiled to me and kissed me softly on my forehead.

"It'll be okay." He told me gently. "I promise."

I wasn't sure I believed him. After all, that is a hard promise to make. But I did know now, that whatever would happen, he would be right beside me. I smiled softly, allowing myself to relax in his arms.

* * *

**And the next chapter! The songs in this chapter are **

**Barbie girl - Aqua**

**Wherever you will go - the Calling**

**The last night – Skillet**

**I want to thank everyone who reviewed. And again, please five reviews before the next chapter!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A new challenge**

_With every step that you take_

_A new road will appear_

_And only after the choice is made_

_The consequences will be clear_

_ MariaC_

_

* * *

_

Reid was trying to calm me down. And not doing a very good job at it. Which probably had something to do with the fact that he didn't have a clue what was wrong with me. I was sitting in the corner of my new room in Reid's house, while the boys sat around me. Kate and Sarah were standing behind their boyfriends, looking down at me with a worried expression. I ignored them all.

Sure, I had read a few books about this, or a similar thing at least, but that didn't make it any easier. I had absolutely no clue how to deal with this. If there even was a thing that I had to deal with, after all I still wasn't sure whether it was a false alarm or not. But no matter what, there was no way I was going to discuss this with Pogue or one of the other sons. For one second I considered talking to Kate or Sarah, but turned that down. Though they were my friends, I wasn't close enough with them for this. No way.

So that only left one other option. Which, surprisingly, actually was a good option. So I took out my phone and quickly sent a quick text to Lizzie.

_Need you. Please come X Rachel_

I kept staring at my phone, waiting for a reply. Finally, I got one.

_One my way. Don't do anything stupid!_

I smiled sadly as I thought about what she meant with stupid. But there was no way I was going to do that now. After all, I had made a promise to Tyler.

Finally, Caleb sighed softly.

"Alright guys," He said. "Let's stop harassing Rachel like this. Kate, Sarah, Reid, let's leave her alone."

Kate and Sarah obeyed immediately. Reid, however, hesitated for a second before following his older friend. Tyler and Pogue remained.

"Rachel." Tyler tried to get my attention. I slowly looked up, no longer possessing the energy to resist their pleas. Tyler smiled happily as his eyes met mine, but that smile quickly vanished again.

"Will you please tell us what's going on?" Pogue begged me. I thought about a way to answer for a second, and then slowly shook my head. No. Tyler sighed.

"You have to tell someone, Rach." He whispered softly. This time I nodded. I knew that.

"Do you want me to call Reid?" Pogue asked. What was this, a cross-examination? I shook my head again, and then held up my phone, that still showed Lizzie's message. Tyler and Pogue read it and then sighed in relief.

Tyler sent me a quick smile, before standing up and walking away. Again. Was it really that hard to just sit with me without having something important?

Pogue, however, did stay. He moved to sit beside me, and embraced me with his right arm. I leaned against his shoulder and started waiting for Lizzie to arrive and make it all better.

* * *

"Rachel!" Lizzie, who apparently was in a ADHD mood today, flew through the door, straight in my arms. Pogue laughed as he pulled back, giving us space to hug each other for a second. When Lizzie finally pulled back, Pogue leaned forward and gave me a soft kiss on the cheek.

"I'll be downstairs. If you need me, just punch Lizzie to make her scream, alright?" I rolled my eyes, then smiled and nodded. He grinned at me before exiting the room, closing the door behind him.

"Soooo." Lizzie started. I smiled at her, waiting for her to ask the question I knew she had been asking herself since she read my text. Then she took my hand and pulled me out of my corner, my happy place. She dragged me towards the bed and practically forced me to sit down on it.

"Now spill." She demanded. "Why did you have to make me this worried? When's the world gonna die?" I rolled my eyes and stood up from the bed again. Lizzie was about to object and pull me back, when she noticed where I was heading. She sat back down and waited for me to join her again.

I quickly grabbed my laptop and sat down beside my friend. I laid my hand on the keyboard, but suddenly wasn't sure what I was going to tell her. How was a I going to say this?

Lizzie apparently noticed my hesitation, because she put her arm around me.

"Just write it down, Rach. It'll be okay." And then I made up my mind, deciding to just take the easy way.

_My period was supposed to be last week._

As I typed it, I suddenly could feel the tears appear in my eyes. Lizzie stared at the words, and then turned to me.

"And it's never been late before?" I slowly shook my head, and starting typing again.

_Not this long._

Lizzie carefully lifted the laptop of my lap and placed it beside her on the bed. Then she pulled me into a tight embrace. I started crying, unable to keep the tears at bay any longer.

"Shhh…" Lizzie whisper in my ear. "It'll be alright." And then I lost all control. There were so many people who had said that, so many people who had _promised_ that, but still it just kept getting worse. And I had no idea what to do now. I couldn't be pregnant. How could I possibly raise a child while I was sixteen years old, had no parents to support me and had no money of my own. I had nothing.

And plus, that baby would be the child of a rapist. How could I possibly handle that? I would probably freak out when ever I'd look at him. Or her.

"Hey!" Lizzie's yell pulled me away from my train of thoughts. She gave me a small slap against the head, not one that hurt, but that was just supposed to bring me back to the world.

"Don't you dare start panicking now, miss! We still don't even know for sure. So just relax. We'll figure something out."

I tried to control my breathing, to slow it down a bit. In, out, in, out. Lizzie smiled proudly at me.

"Well done." She grinned. I smiled at her, suddenly feeling a lot better then before.

_Maybe that's just a mood swing…_

A small voice in my mind muttered. I mentally slapped it.

"So…" Lizzie muttered. "Now we're gonna need some reinforcements. Kate and Sarah are downstairs, right?" I nodded.

"Do you mind if I call them?" This time I shook my head. Lizzie jumped up and disappeared through my door. I figured she would run downstairs, but, as usually, she surprised me.

"KATE! SARAH! HERE!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. I laughed to myself, hoping that she would never change.

Lizzie didn't come back immediately, and when she did, she was alone.

"Kate and Sarah are going to the store." She told me while plumping down on my bed. "So now you have to time to bring me up to date. What happened to the assholes?"

My friends had quickly understood that saying _their_ names was enough to sent me into a full-blown panic attack, so they usually used other ways of indicating them. The term 'assholes' was rather popular.

I extended my hand to my laptop, and she handed it over. I started typing. This, again, wasn't a very happy story.

_There isn't enough evidence. Unless they get them to confess, there's no way they'll be convicted._

Lizzie's eyes darkened, and for once she had nothing to say. Instead she just embraced me again and so we waited in silence for Sarah and Kate to return.

* * *

"Finally!" Lizzie exclaimed as the door opened. "What took you so long?" Kate glared playfully at Lizzie.

"Take it easy, alright. We didn't exactly know what sort of tests were the best, so we bought a couple. And after that, we had to explain to the boys that there was no way we were gonna tell them what was going on. So blame them."

Lizzie grinned. "I will. Later. So, what do we need to do?"

Sarah tossed me a can of cola. "You'd better start drinking." She told me. I rolled my eyes, but did as ordered. The girls all sat down on the bed and they started to read the instructions.

I took the test (and I'll spare you of the details). Let's just say that the time after that, where I had to wait for the results, was one of the worst moments of my life.

Finally Kate jumped up. "It is time!" She exclaimed dramatically. For the past minutes, the girls had done everything in their power to make me laugh. Including telling embarrassing stories about the guys. But this time I was just to nervous to laugh about anything. Maybe I would laugh if the tests were negative.

Sarah, Kate and Lizzie each took a stick to look at. I was afraid that I would drop it as soon as I touched it, because my hands were shaking way too much.

So instead I just stayed on the bed, pulling my knees to my chest and staring at the three girls, hoping that they would smile.

Lizzie was the first to react. Her face fell. Sarah soon followed her example, and then we were all staring at Kate, who was reading the instructions of her test again.

Then she turned to me, with a pitiful expression on her face.

"I'm sorry." She whispered softly. I broke down, burying my face in my knees. My three friends sat down beside me and tried to comfort me, by stroking my hair or my back or whispering that it would be okay. But I just couldn't bring myself to react. I just couldn't handle any more drama in my life.

Sarah sighed softly and stood up. "I'm going to tell the boys, alright?" She asked gently. I nodded once, not having the strength to do anything else. I was thankful of Sarah for wanting to tell them, because I knew that there was absolutely no way I could write those words down.

_I'm pregnant._

Just thinking the words sent me in a new fit of crying. Kate and Lizzie desperately tried to calm me down, but it didn't work. I simply ignored them.

Then suddenly the door was thrown open. Pogue ran in, straight to the bed. Lizzie and Kate pulled back while my brother put threw his arms around me and pulled me to his chest. He didn't say anything, for which I was thankful. If someone else was going to promise me it would be okay, I would probably end up killing him.

Caleb led the girls downstairs, while Pogue, Reid and Tyler stayed behind. Reid sat down beside me, softly stroking my back while Tyler simply leaned against the door, looking down at me. I couldn't bring myself to meet his eyes to figure out what he was thinking.

"Rachel." Pogue suddenly started. He pulled back slightly, just enough to look me in the eyes. For a second he was silent again, so I waited. Then he opened his mouth.

"It'll be okay. I'll make an appointment at the abortion clinic. It won't be a problem." My eyes widened as I realized what he was saying. He was going to kill my baby.

My mind started to sprout all kind of thoughts. Sure, a few minutes ago I had been thinking about how I couldn't have a baby, but now… I didn't want to kill him… or her. Even though it was the child of one of _them_, it also was mine. And I didn't want to loose it.

Pogue kept talking, telling me that everyone would understand, that it would be okay, that it wouldn't hurt… But I was unable to comprehend his words. I pulled back from his arms. As soon as I moved, I felt Reid's hand on my back freeze, while Tyler took a step forward. And then all the thoughts in my mind suddenly stopped. Only one remained, and that one started to scream at me.

_I need to be alone! ALONE!_

And so I jumped up from the bed and ran through the door, ignoring my brother, who was screaming my name. I just ran, not listening to the surprised cries from the living room, where Lizzie, Kate, Sarah and Caleb were. I just ran.

I didn't bother closing the door behind me as I headed towards the forest. I suddenly didn't care about the fact that it might be dangerous, that I wasn't even allowed to be alone. I just ran.

I had no idea how long I had been running before I finally fell down. I had just enough energy left to crawl to the nearest tree and sit against it. And so I buried my face in my knees again, waiting for the tears and the thoughts to come again.

But they didn't come and suddenly it was silent. I sobbed softly, but the tears still wouldn't come.

And so I sat there, while it slowly got dark around me, unable to move, unable to think or cry. I just sat there.

A soft sound made my head fly up and my eyes started to seek the forest frantically. I was scared, but tried to tell myself that it was just my imagination. Or maybe the wind, but anyway, it was nothing. There was nobody besides me. But before I could fully calm myself, a new twig cracked somewhere. And another one. A shadow appeared in the bushes.

"Rachel?" A surprised voice exclaimed. I jumped up and ran in his arms, to relieved that it wasn't some creep to think about what I was doing. Chase put his arms around me, holding me.

"What's wrong?" He asked me. I shook my head unable to answer. "Shall I take you home?" Again, I shook my head. No matter how scared I was, I still didn't feel ready to go home and explain why I ran away. Chase sighed softly, and I suddenly felt guilty for making this so hard for him.

He leaded me back to the tree and sat me down, sitting beside me. Then he took out his phone.

"Pogue?" I couldn't hear the reply, mostly because I didn't have the energy to try.

"Yeah, I found her. What's going on?" This time he was silent for a bit longer, no doubt listening to Pogue's report of the past day.

"Oh." He was silent again for a second. "No, she's okay. I think. At least physically. We're in the forest."

"Uhm… Pogue, she doesn't want to go home yet." This time I could hear Pogue yelling through the phone, though I still couldn't hear what he was saying. I could guess, however.

"Listen, Pogue, I'm sorry. But I'm not gonna drag her through the woods if she doesn't want to go yet. Listen, I'll stay with her until she's ready to go, alright?" This time I couldn't hear Pogue's voice anymore, which hopefully meant that he had calmed down.

"Okay. See ya." Chase hung up and put his phone away, managing to do that without letting go of me.

"You worried your brother." He then told me. "He said he had sent you thirteen text messages." I frowned as I pulled out my phone. I hadn't heard anything.

I looked at the screen, that told me I had fifteen unread texts. My mouth opened, forming a perfect O. Apparently, I had been pretty out of it. Beside me, I heard Chase laugh softly, so I quickly closed my mouth. Then I sent him a text.

_What are you doing here?_

Chase pulled out his phone, laughing softly as he saw the sender.

"I like walking." He simply said. "So why did you run away?" I looked down, scared to see the judgment in his eyes. They probably were all furious at me for running away like that, to stay away almost an entire day without saying anything.

Then I started to type a new text.

_I'm pregnant. Pogue wanted me to have an abortion. I guess I just got scared._

I wasn't even sure why I wrote down the last part. After all, he would probably have understood it without me telling him that. But I guess I just needed someone to talk to, and Chase was just perfect for that. I knew him, and knew he wouldn't hurt me, but I didn't see him everyday, which made it a lot easier to tell him my secrets.

I waited as he read the text. Then he frowned and turned to me.

"Do you want an abortion?" I shrugged with one shoulder, not sure what I wanted. Chase looked me in the eyes, trying to see through me.

"Did Pogue want you to have an abortion, or did he think that was what _you_ wanted?" Chase then asked. Again, I just shrugged.

Chase sighed softly and I looked down again. Then he pulled me into a tight hug.

"Listen, Rachel." He whispered in my ear. "I know that Pogue won't force you to do something you don't want to do. It's your choice. And I know that whatever you choose, the others will help you. If you decide to keep the baby, it's not like you'll suddenly be alone. They will help you raise him or her. So it's up to you."

I pulled back, making sure he could see my lips. Then I mouthed 'thank you' to him. He simply smiled.

"Anytime." He told me, causing me to smile as well. "So, are you ready to go home?" I hesitated for a second, remembering my fear of their anger. But Chase seemed to read my thoughts.

"Don't worry. I'm sure they won't blame you." He whispered softly. I nodded softly and he jumped up. Then he took my hand and pulled me up as well.

I suddenly realized that I had absolutely no clue where we were going, but luckily Chase did. Or thought he did, at least. He leaded me through the forest.

"Did you run there?" He suddenly asked. I nodded and his eyes widened.

"Wow. Respect, that's quite a distance." I shrugged. To be real honest, I had no clue how far it had been.

But I did start to understand his point when I realized that we had been walking for over an hour before we finally reached his car. He opened the passengers door for me with a small bow, causing me to giggle soundlessly. Something he seemed quite content with.

Then he walked to the drivers side and sat down. He turned the music on and I relaxed in my seat, listening to 'the last night' by skillet. One of my most favorite songs. Who says there's no such things as a coincidence?

* * *

I laid in my bed beside Lizzie. As Chase had predicted, the others hadn't been mad at all. Reid had said that if anyone would follow him for two weeks, he would probably break his nose, which was his way of saying 'I completely understand'. Lizzie had decided to stay over, something I was very glad with. I had missed her and wished that we could see each other more often. But since she had school, something I was free of for another three days, and I couldn't go to Boston without someone driving me, it was kind of hard to meet.

I softly touched her arm, afraid that she might be asleep. I didn't want to wake her up now.

"Yeah?" She asked, in the same happy voice that she always used, so apparently she had been awake. Good. "Have you made up your mind?" After Chase had explained to them that I didn't know what to do, Kate had slapped Pogue for saying something like he had said. After that, Lizzie had told me to take my time and say it when I was ready.

I nodded to her. Her eyes widened. Apparently, she had expected me to have something else to say.

"Really? So, do you want to keep it?" I took one deep breath before nodding again. Lizzie threw her arms around me again, nearly squishing me to death against her. I laughed silently as I tried to push her away from me so I could breath again.

She pulled back, suddenly looking serious again. "That's great, Rachel." She told me softly. "I'm sure it'll work out and that it will be a great kid." I smiled at her and mouthed something to her.

"Thank you." She was practically beaming, and at that point, so was I.

* * *

**Since I didn't really like the chapter, I decided to update this chapter without waiting for the fifth review. Something I'm not gonna do anytime soon again, SO REVIEW!**  
**The next chapter will contain some more drama: Rachel will go to school again and face her classmates, including Aaron, Riley and Bordy...**


	13. Chapter 13

**Open eyes**

**

* * *

**_I am everything you want_  
_ I am everything you need_  
_ I am everything inside of you_  
_ That you wish you could be_  
_ I say all the right things_  
_ At exactly the right time_  
_ But I mean nothing to you and I don't know why_  
_ And I don't know why_  
_ Why_  
_ I don't know_

_Everything you want-Vertical Horizon  
_

**

* * *

**

Rachel took a deep breath before opening her door. Tyler, who sat beside het, sent her a worried look, but she ignored him. She was afraid that, if she would pay attention to it, she wouldn't be able to hold it together anymore, because the fear that she had pushed away that morning was still searching for a way to get out. And if it would get out, she would most likely get a panic attack.

Reid was waiting outside the car. As soon as she stepped outside, he put his arm around her and used his other hand to close the door. She leaned against him while waiting for Tyler, trying to ignore the looks everyone sent her. Her hands were starting to shake.

"Don't worry." Reid whispered in her ear. "It'll be alright."

Pogue parked his Ducati beside the hummer and walked towards them. Kate and Sarah were next to join the group and then Caleb arrived as well, bringing Chase with him.

Now that the group was complete, they walked towards the school together. They quickly grabbed their books from their lockers and headed towards the first class, which they reached at the exact same time the first bell rang.

English, the one class we they had together.

They sat down, close together, while they waited for the others to arrive. None of them spoke a word.

More and more people entered the classroom and Rachel was starting to feel scared. Tyler took her hand, rubbing soothing circles on it, while Pogue put his arm around her. As he had joked before, she was the one girl he could hold without starting a fight with Kate. The two boys managed to calm her down a bit, though she still felt nervous. The looks everyone gave her weren't really helping. Reid glared at a girl who had been staring at her since she had entered the classroom.

Rachel was just wishing that miss Campbell would enter soon, because, at that moment, she was the only one who was able to drag the attention away from her.

She leaned against Pogue, closing her eyes and taking a few slow breaths, hoping they would calm her down. And then the trouble started. Mandy Philips entered the classroom.

Mandy was quit easy to describe. It just took one word: Bitch. And really, she was.

She was a long, blond, skinny cheerleader, who was hated by every girl in the school and stared after by every boy with low standards. Like Brody, who she had been 'dating' for the past two years. Dating meant, in this case, that they went on a date two years ago and now only met in one of their rooms. Everyone knew that they both cheated on each other, so perhaps 'friends with benefits' was a better description for their relation.

Reid had turned her down because she wasn't worth it, according to him, and that said something. Reid was usually willing to sleep with every girl who was stupid enough for his pick-up lines. And you had to be pretty stupid if you thought 'you know, that's my grandmother's name' was romantic.

"Well, well. Look how's back." Mandy laughed, using that sugar sweet voice she always used before she would try to destroy you. Something she was quit good at, unfortunately.

Her friends giggled softly, as Reid felt Rachel freeze beside him. Kate started to turn to Mandy and was opening her mouth to say something. But Mandy was faster.

"It's the lying bitch. Did you really think that anyone would believe that my boyfriend would be blind enough to ever even _look _at you? I mean, look at you!" Her eyes glided up and down over Rachel's body, causing her to shrink away. Mandy sneered and opened her mouth, but this time Kate was first.

"If he could look at you, he has to be pretty blind. Though, maybe you're just his back-up, you know, since no other girl in the world is stupid enough to go for him." A few laughs were heard, though silently, because no one wanted to make an enemy out of Mandy. Pogue grinned proudly at his girlfriend while Kate continued.

"So why don't you just leave us all alone, and start a fight with your boy toy later on? Because, honestly, you are ruining my view." Though that last comment was as old as time, it still did the trick. Mandy's sneer turned into a glare.

"Why don't you shut it and stay out of this, bitch! Bordy would never ever sleep with a skank like her!"

Pogue stood up, moving to walk forward. One look at his face made Rachel crouch down in fear. He was furious. Tyler put his free arm around Rachel, while his other hand was still rubbing circles on hers. But before Pogue could say anything, an unexpected helper arrived.

"Shut it, Mandy. We all know that Bordy was bragging about sleeping with her, and that there was no way that she would sleep with him. So here's my advise: If you're mad, go to Bordy, slap him in the face and get it over with. But don't take it out on Rachel, because we all know this wasn't her fault."

The entire class was silent as everyone was staring wide-eyed at Kira, while she glared at Mandy. Finally, Mandy turned around and walked away to a free spot in the back of the class room. Kira sent a small, apologizing smile to Rachel, but she was too shocked to return it. Kira, Aaron's long time girlfriend and the bitch of Spencer, had just defended her from her (former) best friend Mandy. Caleb removed his bag from the seat next to him without speaking a word. Kira sat down.

"That was interesting…" Reid whispered to Tyler, who sat beside him. Tyler nodded in agreement.

And then miss Campbell entered the classroom, late as always, and the lesson started.

"Why did you help?" Caleb asked Kira right after the lunch bell had rung. Kira turned to him, with a look full of regret.

"A few days before the… incident, Aaron was talking about how he would get Rachel in bed. Riley and Bordy joined in. We all laughed, thinking that they were just joking…" Kira looked down while Caleb's eyes widened.

_They had planned it._

He though. Until then, he had figured that it was just a spur of the moment thing. That didn't make it better, of course, but still. Now it turned out that Aaron had been _planning _on raping Rachel. That was…

Before Caleb could finish his thoughts, Kira continued talking.

"And then, the day after, they were laughing about getting her in bed, and how she was screaming and stuff…" Kira fell silent again, unable to say what exactly had happened.

_Aaron took his shot and laughed, high-fiving Bordy. They had just won another game of pool, something they could never have done is Garwin had been there. _

_But Garwin wasn't there, which was quit rare. The blond practically lived in Nicky's. _

_Kira looked on feeling bored. She hated pool, but there was simply nothing she could do beside watching. _

'_Hey, guys!" Trevor greeted his friends as he and Richard joined the group. "Who's winning?" _

"_They are." Kira replied, sounding just as bored as they looked. Aaron laughed as he put an arm around her. _

"_Ah, don't be jealous!" Kira sent an evil smirk towards her boyfriend, knowing exactly how to respond. _

"_If I would be jealous, it would be of Reid. He could kick your ass any day!" She smiled sweetly at him. But to her surprise, Aaron didn't start to shake with anger, as he usually did when someone talked about Reid Garwin with him. _

"_Oh, I wouldn't be jealous of him. I finally got things even between us." Kira looked confused, while Bordy and Riley started to laugh and Richard and Trevor shared a mocking look. They knew what Aaron was talking about, and were pretty sure he was lying about it._

"_Oh, yeah. So you finally got Parry, huh?" Kira frowned, still not understanding their logic. _

"_Pogue? What does he have to do with this?" The five boys laughed. Bordy then shook his head. _

"_Not Pogue. Rachel." Kira rolled her eyes as she finally understood them. _

"_Yeah, like she would actually want to sleep with any of you. I mean, she just screams 'virgin'!" Riley shook his head with a huge grin. _

"_Who said anything about wanting it? But trust me: She's no virgin no more!" Kira lifted her eyebrow, and Bordy spoke up again. _

"_After the way we made her scream, there's no doubt that things are even between the fags and us!" Kira rolled her eyes. _

"_Whatever. If you're gonna start talking like that, I'm out. See ya later." She walked away._

Kira blinked the memory away. She was still mad at herself for not saying anything, for not doing anything. She looked at Caleb, expecting him to look disgusted by her. But he didn't.

"It wasn't your fault." Caleb told her softly. "There was no way you could have known. I'm glad you told us now." Kira nodded softly.

"You're welcome. And if there's anything you need, just tell me. I'm even willing to testify, if needed, and Richard and Trevor probably will as well. I mean, there is gonna be a lawsuit, right?" Caleb lifted one shoulder in a helpless motion.

"Our lawyer is still searching for evidence. For now, it just seems to be our word against theirs." Kira softly shook her head.

"Not anymore." She told him, before walking away. Caleb grinned softly before heading to lunch, where he would meet his friends.

Rachel was walking out of her math class, the only class she didn't have with anyone of her friends. Tyler had tried to switch, but apparently all the math classes had been full, meaning that switching wasn't an option.

"Hello Rachel." The moment she heard that voice behind her, she froze, looking around her to search for help, looking past the source of the voice, knowing that she would faint the moment she saw his face.

The hallway was empty, which probably wasn't a coincidence. Aaron wouldn't be so stupid to confront her in front of the whole school.

"Don't we say 'Hi' anymore, Rachel? What happened to your manners?" Rachel started to shake and desperately tried to make her feet move. But it was like they were glued to the floor.

A hand covered her eyes while a voice whispered into her ear;

"Guess who it is!" Rachel felt the tears starting to stream down. She wished that she could just scream for help, but that was impossible now. Thanks to them.

She felt an arm sliding around her, pulling her closer to Aaron, who was standing beside her.

"Didn't we warn you, little bitch?" A voice hissed in her ear. A voice that didn't belong to Aaron.

Bordy had joined the party.

"We told you not to tell anyone!" A hand connected with her cheek. That was Riley. Their little group was complete again. And she was a dead girl.

Suddenly the hand was removed and she could see again. And she saw Riley and Bordy's scared faces looking at something behind her.

"You warned her?" An al to familiar voice hissed. "Let me warn you. You stay the fuck away from her, or I will kill you." Rachel turned slightly, careful not to turn her back to Riley and Bordy. She was just in time to see Chase banging Aaron's head against the wall before tossing him on the floor. Then he turned to Riley and Bordy, his face covered with a menacing expression. The two boys grabbed their friends arm and ran away, much like their last confrontation with Chase.

Rachel looked at her savior, who was in turn looking at her. His menacing expression from before was replaced by a worried one. Rachel flew forward, in his arms. She cried in his chest as he softly stroke her back.

"Shhh, you're save now." He whispered softly, making her the promise she needed to hear.

Rachel leaned against Reid while pushing her fork in her dinner. She wasn't hungry and the food wasn't good enough to make her hungry. She saw Pogue as he lifted his eyebrows and she followed his eyes. Caleb walked their way, carrying his own tray with food. He put it on the table and gave Sarah a soft peck on the cheek before sitting down beside her. He smiled at his friends.

"Kira is willing to testify. She says that Richard and Trevor probably will as well." Rachel's eyes widened; this defiantly was a surprise. The others reacted just as surprised as her. Pogue looked at his little sister, worried that she might freak out again, as she did most of the time when the lawsuit was mentioned.

"You tired?" He asked her worried, noticing the fatigued way she leaned against Reid. Rachel simply shrugged, but Pogue knew what that meant.

_Yeah, dead beat, but I don't want to say it._

Chase looked at her worried.

"If you want, I could take you home." He suggested. Rachel looked down now that the whole table was looking at her. She hated it when everyone was focusing on her. Sarah quickly caught on to it, and started to talk to Caleb about their math class. Kate joined the conversation and tried to pull Tyler and Reid in as well, but that didn't work. The two guys, just as Pogue and Chase, were still concentrating on Rachel, trying to figure out what she was thinking.

Rachel didn't really want to go home. She knew that it would only make it harder to go to school again the next day. But she was tired, and was afraid that she would fall apart if she would stay any longer. So she nodded softly. Chase grabbed his bag and walked towards her, putting one arm around her and leading her away before anyone could object.

He ignored the glare that Pogue was sending him, though he could feel it burning in his back.

Back at home, or Reid's home, actually, Chase leaded Rachel towards her room and helped her lay down on her bed. He then took of her shoes, turned the TV on and handed her the remote. Rachel was smiling. Though she would usually get pissed if anyone would try to baby her like this, Chase managed to make it feel like it wasn't a big deal, or like it was some sort of joke.

He laid down beside her, putting one arm around her. She curled up against him as they watched Supernatural, her favorite show on the planet.

She felt her mind calm down, and as the nervousness disappeared, she started to feel hungry.

"I'm gonna make a sandwich for myself. You want one?" Chase suddenly asked her, as if he was reading her mind. Rachel looked up at him as she nodded. She wasn't too surprised, since she had long ago noticed that Chase seemed to be able to read her like an open book. He smiled at her before kissing her forehead. Then he walked away, leaving Rachel alone in her room.

Rachel focused on the TV, trying not to think about the fact that she was alone at the moment. She knew she was acting silly. After all, a few days ago she had run away because she needed to be alone, and now she would start to freak out whenever someone would leave her for a second.

"Rachel?" Rachel looked up at the door, seeing Chase standing there with a tray with two sandwiches in his hand. He looked worried at her, and she suddenly realized that she hadn't been as calm as she had tried to be. Her knees were pulled up to her chin and she had started rocking herself back and forth.

Chase sat down beside her, pulling her into his arms again. She leaned against him, breathing in his scent and calming herself down. He smiled softly at her and handed her the sandwich. Rachel suddenly realized why she didn't like Chase so much. He knew when to shut up, and when to say something. And then he even knew _what_ to say. He was kind, had saved her three times already and he was hot.

_He was hot._

What the hell? Rachel asked herself, not fully understanding her own mind at the moment. Do you like Chase Collins or something?

And she immediately knew the answer. Yes. She did like Chase Collins, because he was everything she had ever liked in Tyler and managed to top that with the qualities that she missed in him.

And as Rachel was drowning in her own mind, she missed the triumphant smile that was spreading across Chase's face as he realized that his plan was working just perfectly.

* * *

**Just for the Chase haters amongst you: I actually have a plan for this, so please don't abandon this story just yet. **

**So I decided to drop the whole five-reviews rule, since you guys seem to review less and less the more reviews I ask for. But please, do review. I need to know people actually like this story to keep me writing. I hope you liked this chapter, the next one will be up around next Friday.  
**


	14. Chapter 14

**My love**

**

* * *

**

_Now I can hold her tight,_

_Show her the meaning of my love_

_And although she might still cry at night,_

_Now she's truly save._

_Broken girl- MariaC_

_

* * *

_

"I'm boooooooooored." Reid whined. He was laying on the couch, throwing a ball in the air. Caleb sighed softly, getting annoyed by the younger blond. Reid grinned and tossed the ball at his friend.

"REID!" Caleb yelled, as the object hit him full in the face. Reid laughed, while the others didn't even bother to react. Caleb tossed the ball back at Reid, as hard as he could, but the blond caught it. For a second, Caleb thought about getting out of his chair to take revenge, but he decided against it. On that moment, he was way too lazy to move.

It was Saturday, and no one knew what to do. So they all just lay on the couch, watching the TV shows they had watched over a thousand times. And Rachel had enough of it. The past week hadn't been easy; she had went back to school, where everyone was constantly watching her, whispering about her. And now, she wanted to have some fun. But it was just her luck that there always was a party in Ipswich, except when she needed one.

Then she pulled out her phone, dialed a number and tossed the phone at Sarah, who luckily saw it coming before it hit her.

Sarah looked surprised at the object in her hand, and then hesitantly put it against her ear.

"Uh, hello?" For a few seconds she was silent, no doubt listening to whoever she was calling. Then her face lit up.

"Hey Lizzie, it's Sarah. Rachel made me call." She was silent again, and then laughed.

"Yeah, I agree. I really don't understand that girl sometimes." She grinned at Rachel, and the younger girl playfully scowled.

"But I can guess what she wanted to ask. Are there any good parties in Boston?" Now everyone in the room pricked up his ears, not wanting to miss the answer. Sarah listened for a second, and then nodded.

"Alright. See ya in three hours." Kate, Sarah and Rachel jumped up and ran to Rachel's room, wanting to look at their bests for the party.

"You have two hours!" Caleb yelled after them, after which he turned to Pogue, Tyler, Reid and Chase.

"We are gonna be late." He stated. His friends nodded in agreement.

* * *

"You okay, Rach?" Kate asked Rachel worried, the girl looked up for a second, before nodding. Then she looked down again. Sarah and Kate shared a look, before dumping their clothes on Rachel's bed. Those could wait.

"Come on, Rachel. Talk to us! Or do I have to get Reid?" To everyone's surprise, Reid had become Rachel's favorite refuge. Sarah giggled softly.

"I think she'd prefer Chase." Kate laughed and shook his head.

"No way, she and Tyler are made for each other!" Rachel started to blush and threw a pillow at her friends. But the two girls simply laughed.

Rachel rolled her eyes and started to move her hands. In the past weeks, she had tried to learn sign language, and though she wasn't very good at it, she could finally have a conversation with someone without a pen and paper.

_Do you think that a party is a good idea for the baby?_

Kate and Sarah frowned for a second. Rachel had a point. But then Sarah shook her head.

"Nah, I'm sure it'll be okay. I mean, you're not that far along. So just take it easy, and don't drink any alcohol and it'll be fine." Rachel didn't seem convinced, and looked at Kate, searching for support. Kate thought about Sarah's words for a second, and then nodded.

"I'm gonna go with Sarah on this one. Plus, you don't necessarily have to do dance to have fun on a party. Think of it like this: All of your friends are gonna be there. And I promise we won't leave you alone." Rachel's face slowly turned from worried to relieved. She nodded and walked back to her closet, trying to search for a wide top.

"So when's the doctor's appointment?" Sarah suddenly asked. Rachel was already turning around to give the answer, when Kate opened her mouth.

"Monday morning, 9 AM, right?" Rachel stuck her thumb in the air, already imagining Kate's triumphant smile. The girl did love it when she was right about something.

Then Rachel found the top she was looking for, and she turned around, showing it to Sarah and Kate. The two girls nodded in approval and Rachel tossed in on the bed.

"Where did you get this?" Kate suddenly asked. Rachel turned around, wondering what the girl was talking about. When she saw the shirt in Kate's hands, she started to laugh. Kate did as well.

The shirt was red, with a white print on it, saying: 'I do what I want to' Sarah lifted her eyebrow.

"What's so funny about that?" She asked, not understanding what her friends found so funny. Kate turned it around and showed the back to Sarah. The blond girl started to laugh as well when she saw what the print there said.

'And I don't want you.'

Sarah turned to Rachel, with an amused expression. "Reid?" She simply asked and Rachel nodded, smiling.

"You should wear this!" Kate laughed. "Pogue's gonna have a heart attack!" Rachel got an evil smile on her face, and extended her hand. Kate handed her the shirt and Rachel pulled it on. Sarah's eyes widened.

"You're not seriously gonna wear that, are you?" Rachel laughed and shook her head.

_I'm changing in the car. If I can ride with you two, of course._

Kate and Sarah nodded, both wearing evil grins.

"I can't wait to see the boys reaction." Kate laughed. Sarah and Rachel couldn't agree more.

* * *

"What the FUCK are you wearing?" Pogue yelled, after having stared at his little sister for almost a minute. Reid was doubling up with laughter, while Caleb, Tyler and Chase were looking just as shocked as Pogue.

"I'm proud of you, baby girl. I didn't actually think you'd wear it!" Reid told Rachel, as soon as he was able to talk again. Wrong move.

Pogue slowly turned around, looking at his friend with a dangerous expression that was so menacing, that even Reid stopped laughing.

"You bought that for MY little sister?" Reid smiled innocently, but when he saw that his friend didn't calm down, he started to look more regretful. He shrugged helplessly.

"I didn't think she'd actually wear it." He mumbled softly. Pogue rolled his eyes.

"Great, Reid. Just great. Rachel, go upstairs and cha… Rachel!" But his sister had already disappeared out of sight. Outside, the boys heard a car start. Pogue groaned, before grabbing the keys of his Ducati.

"Come on, before they get themselves into trouble." The boys walked towards their vehicles. Reid and Tyler would take Reid hummer, Caleb and Chase would take Caleb's mustang and Pogue would take his own bike.

And the entire way to the party, Pogue was wondering if his sister had just gone crazy, or that he just had never noticed it before.

When they reached the party, Rachel stepped out of the car with an innocent smile and her favorite top, a top that Pogue had long ago approved of. And so he had no choice but to forget the rant he had wanted to give Rachel. Rachel, Kate and Sarah laughed at each other and then walked towards the party, giving the boys no other choice then to follow them.

* * *

"Do you want to dance?" Rachel looked up at the boy standing in front of her. He was handsome and very muscular. She shook her head and took a sip from her, non-alcoholic, drink, not paying anymore attention to the boy.

"Ah, come on. I can give you a great time." Rachel looked up again, meeting his eyes with hers. And suddenly she became very nervous. The way he looked just reminded her of the way… _they _had looked, just before…

Rachel forced herself to stop the train of thoughts, knowing that they would probably lead her to a panic attack. She started to look around her, searching for her friends. Reid was dancing with some girl and Tyler and Chase were playing foosball. And even though Kate and Sarah had promised not to leave her alone, Rachel had practically kicked them towards their boyfriends, thinking that Lizzie would keep her company. Only shortly after that, a friend of Lizzie had asked her to dance. Of course, Lizzie had refused at first, until Rachel had motioned her it was alright.

Something she was starting to regret.

"Just one dance." The boy grinned. Rachel shook her head one last time, before standing up to go find her friends.

"Come on." Rachel froze when she felt the boy's fingers around her wrist. She tried to pull free, but he was stronger.

"Just one dance." He whispered in her ear, causing her to shudder.

"Hey! Let her go!" Rachel turned around and sighed in relief when she saw Chase standing there. The boy really seemed to feel when she needed him or something. That was the fourth time he showed up to save the day, right before everything was about to go wrong.

But the boy who was holding Rachel, didn't seem to impressed. He looked Chase up and down and then snorted.

"What? Are you her boyfriend or something?" His hand pulled back from Rachel's arm and turned into a fist. Rachel quickly took a step back and Chase wrapped his arm protectively around her.

"You okay?" He asked her softly. Rachel nodded weakly and leaned against him, searching for protection. The boy before them laughed.

"You should really keep an eye on your slut, ya know. Who knows who she'll sleep with." Rachel shrunk back, clinging to Chase.

Chase took a swing. The boy fell down with a scream of pain, his hand covering his nose.

"You broke my nose!" The boy cried out, sounding almost shocked. And now it was Chase's turn to snort.

"Too bad. I was hoping for the skull. Stay away from her." Then he took Rachel's hand and leaded her away from the scene. The girl was surprised when she noticed that no one seemed to pay any attention to the boy laying on the ground.

Rachel walked through the door that Chase held open for her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Are you okay?" She heard Chase ask her again. Rachel looked up at him and smiled softly at him, trying to thank him with her eyes. Then she nodded. Chase seemed to relax a bit, though Rachel hadn't really noticed how tense he had been before. He walked towards her and pulled her in his arms. She leaned against his chest, closing her eyes again. And suddenly she felt herself relax, like there wasn't a care in the world. Not as long as she was with Chase, she knew. He would keep the danger away.

"Rachel." His gentle voice made her look up at him with curiosity. He leaned forward, until their lips almost met.

"Tell me if I go to far." Their faces were so close together that Rachel could feel the wind move when he talked.

And then their lips met, and she got lost from the world. Neither one heard the door opening.

* * *

"Pogue. Not now. Come on, let's find Rachel." Pogue pulled back from his girlfriend, only slightly disappointed that she stopped their make-out session. Mostly, he was just happy that she liked his sister so much.

"I love you." He told her smiling, hearing the happiness in his voice. Kate giggled softly before pecking him on the lips.

"Love you too, but that won't make me kiss you again." And then, after a thought, she added. "At least, not at the moment. Please try again later." Pogue grinned softly, and then followed his girlfriend to the table where he had left his sister. Only the person that was sitting there, definitely wasn't his sister. It was a guy, with a bleeding nose and a very pissed-off look on his face.

"Hey." Pogue greeted him. "Do you know where the girl that was here went?" The boy looked up, glaring at Pogue like it was his fault that his nose was broken.

"That little slut went away with the asshole that broke my nose." He snapped. Pogue's eyes transformed from friendly to menacing within a second. For the second time that day, the boy hit the ground with a loud thud.

"Think twice before you start talking about my sister like that." Pogue hissed, before turning around to go search his sister. In the mean time, Kate was already on her way.

"Sarah! Caleb!" She almost felt guilty when the two lovebirds pulled away from each other, blushing. "Have you seen Rachel?" And, as if she had spoken some sort of magic word, the blushes disappeared and where replaced by a worried look. Kate didn't waste anymore time asking the question again, already knowing the answer.

"Maybe Tyler knows." Sarah suggested, her eyes falling on the brunette, who was dancing with a blond girl close by. The three headed over there, but Tyler reacted the same way to the news as Sarah and Caleb had. Well, minus the blushing.

The blond girl didn't seem to happy when Tyler left with his friends without even bothering to say goodbye. She stomped away angry, searching for a new toy.

Pogue and Reid, who was dragged away from his toy by Pogue, met their friends at the door.

"Anything?" Pogue asked anxiously. His friends shook their heads.

Kate tried to reassure her boyfriend by laying a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry. That boy said that someone had broken his nose, so that was probably Chase. And that means that he's with her." Pogue looked at her like she was nuts.

"My sister vanishes from a party with some boy, AND YOU TELL ME TO CALM DOWN?" He nearly screamed the last words, but Kate wasn't impressed. She was long used to her his tantrums.

Caleb stepped in before his friend would loose it.

"She wouldn't just leave, Pogue. She's probably just outside for some air, or in the bathroom or something." Kate and Sarah shared a look and then started to walk away.

"We'll check the bathroom!" Sarah called over her shoulder. For a second, the boys just watched them go. Then Reid shrugged.

"Guess that means we're gonna check outside. Come on." As he opened the door and looked outside, his eyes widened. Then he quickly closed the door again, his face slightly red.

"Alright guys, she ain't there. Let's find the girls, see if they found her. He grabbed Pogue's arm and started to drag his friend away. Tyler and Caleb shared a bemused look before turning back to the door. Tyler opened it, just as Pogue turned around. Three pairs eyes widened as the boys saw something that they wouldn't see in their worst nightmares. Then Pogue sprinted out the door, pulling the two outside apart.

"What the FUCK do you think you're doing?" He screamed at a shocked sister, and the boy that now could be probably be described as 'her boyfriend'.

* * *

**I hope you liked the chapter. In the next one, there's gonna be some tension between the boys. Especially between Chase, Pogue and someone else. Guess who else doesn't like the idea of Chase and Rachel! **

**Oh, and there will be some more information about the trial. So if you want a preview, REVIEW!  
**


	15. No chapter, but important

**I'm really sorry about this false chapter, but there ****is something I just have to say. A while ago, I promised I'd update at least once a week, but unfortunately I have to break this promise now. You see, I got sick a few weeks back (six weeks ago now, I think). Last week the doctor told me that I most likely had Pfeiffer's disease. At first, I could handle it, but now I'm feeling really tired. When you have to type each word three times, because you keep forgetting how to spell it, writing is really hard. So I'm not sure yet when I'll update again, but I will. I promise. I hope you can forgive me this delay, and that you won't give up on this story. **

**Again, I'm really sorry. **


	16. Chapter 15

**As was told**

**

* * *

**

_You're never gonna be alone from this moment on  
If you ever feel like letting go, I won't let you fall  
You're never gonna be alone, I'll hold you 'til the hurt is gone_

_Never gonna be alone-Nickelback_

_

* * *

_

"Pogue…" Rachel tried to get her brothers attention as he dragged her towards the hummer. "Pogue!" But he completely ignored her as he pushed her into the car. Then he turned to Reid and Tyler.

"You two take her home and don't let her leave your sight. I'll be there right away."

"Pogue, come on, man. Don't you think you're overreacting just a little bit?" Reid asked worried. He had seen Rachel's face, and was afraid she'd start to cry in a few minutes. Tyler rolled his eyes and pulled out his keys.

"Don't worry. We got her." He told Pogue, receiving a look full of unbelief from his best friend. Pogue walked away.

"Pogue, listen, I…" Pogue turned to the boy who had, in his eyes, caused all the problems. His eyes were so furious that Chase almost took a step back.

"Listen? What the fuck, Chase? I thought we were friends, and then you go kissing my sister behind my back?" Chase frowned. He didn't really see his friends problem. Sure, it sucked to see your little sister kiss someone, but what did that have to do with being friends?

"Pogue, it isn't like I used you to get to her or something." He said, looking at Caleb for support. The boy simply put his hands in the air. He didn't want to get in the middle of _that_.

And then Pogue took a step forward, taking a swing. Chase managed to duck just in time, causing Pogue to stumble.

"You took advantage of her!" Pogue accused his friend. "You knew she was easy to break, and you used that!"

Chase's hands turned into fists. Sure, he could understand that Pogue was worried about his sister and that he didn't like the idea of her having a boyfriend, but accusing him of taking advantage of her? That went too far.

Caleb saw the look of rage appear in Chase's eyes and took a step forward, but it was already too late. Chase hit Pogue full in the face, and the fight started.

* * *

Reid was starting to feel uncomfortable. Tyler, who usually was a calm, friendly person, was now gripping the wheel so hard that his fingers where turning white. Rachel was desperately trying to keep her tears at bay while looking out of the window. Reid sighed and turned on the radio, hoping it would relieve the tension. Tyler turned it off again, before Reid could even recognize the song.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

Finally the arrived at his house, and he quickly jumped out of the car. Tyler jumped out as well, and then opened Rachel's door. She got out of the car and slowly started to walk to the house. She looked like a zombie, Reid thought by himself.

Tyler moved to follow the girl, but Reid had a better idea. He grabbed his friend's arm and pulled him back.

"What?" Tyler snapped. Reid rolled his eyes. Sure, he understood why Tyler was acting like this. The boy had just seen the girl he considered to be the love of his life kissing some other boy. Reid would be upset as well if something like that would happen to him. But he knew that Tyler was the only one to blame for this.

"If you wanted her, you should have done something before." Reid told his friend, straightforward as ever. And again, it didn't really do much good.

"Yeah, 'cause you know all about relationships, right? Just shut up and keep out of it, alright. It's none of your business." Then Tyler pulled away, pacing to the car with a furious expression. Reid sighed softly before following his friend, muttering to himself about how stupid his friends could be sometimes.

"What the fuck where you thinking?" Reid's eyes widened as he heard his friend's outburst, silently repeating his previous thought. His friends could really be idiots sometimes. Insensitive, douche-y idiots. And that came from the boy who was considered to be the greatest player of Ipswich.

"You kissed Collins? COLLINS? Why him? I mean, he's always flirting around…"

"Tyler…" Reid tried to calm his friend, watching the tears streaming down from Rachel's eyes. But apparently, Tyler wasn't just stupid now. He also was deaf and blind.

"He flirted with Kate and Sarah, with Lizzy when she was here, and you just kiss him? You barely even know the guy!"

"Tyler!" Reid said, slightly louder then before. Still no reaction.

"Was this the first time? Or did it happen before? How far did you go?" Reid's eyes widened. Sure, he knew his friend, and he knew that Tyler had the tendency to go to far when he was upset. But this was starting to get very, very dangerous.

"Did you sleep with him?" Tyler nearly screamed the words in Rachel's face, and then she couldn't hold it in anymore. Her hands turned into fists, and for a second Reid thought she would slap Tyler. He wouldn't try to stop her. But then she turned around and ran away. Reid looked after her, making sure she was running upstairs, and not outside, worried that it would lead to another frantic search through the woods. When he heard a door slam upstairs, he knew she was in her room. And then he turned to Tyler, who stood frozen in the middle of the room.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Reid yelled in his friends face, unable to believe the boy he considered to be his friend. "You accused her of sleeping with him? After all that happened? And then telling her that he's flirting around, like he's just using her? Great idea, let's see how much more she can take before she tries to kill herself again!" Tyler's mouth opened for a second and then closed again, making him look like a goldfish searching for air.

"I… I just…" He stuttered, but Reid interrupted him.

"You what? You where jealous? Well, guess what, it's a bit late to decide you want her. You've had enough time, but you didn't do a thing. You just ignored her for most of the time! So now it's too late, and you'd better leave her alone. Because if I find out you're trying to destroy what's between her and Chase, I will kill you, got it?" After that, he turned around, rushing upstairs. He was scared about what he would find there, because he knew how much Rachel liked Tyler. How much she loved all of them. How much their opinion meant to her. And now, they had destroyed everything they had build up in the past months, in one fit of temper. They really were assholes.

"Rachel?" The girl was sitting in the corner again, something, Reid had learned, wasn't a good sign. He sat down beside her. For a second he didn't know what to say. Then he whispered softly, so soft she could barely hear him.

"I like Chase. He's a good guy, and he'll treat you right." Rachel looked up at him, with red, puffy eyes that were staring in his, searching for the truth. Reid simply looked back, waiting for her to accept his words. Then she leaned against him, and he put her arms around her, pulling her closer.

"Tyler is sorry, by the way. He didn't mean what he said." He felt Rachel's head move against his chest, and knew she was nodding. He continued.

"And Pogue will learn to live with it. He's just having a bit of a hard time watching his little sister grow up." He felt her shake a bit and smiled to himself. She was laughing again.

"Just give them some time." He whispered in her ear. She nodded again, and then she pulled back from him, just far enough so that he could see her face.

"Thanks." She mouthed to him, and he simply smiled at her, his way of saying 'your welcome'. With that, the conversation stopped. Reid just sat beside her, holding her, comforting her with his presence. After a while, he had no idea how long, he noticed her eyes were closed and he smiled softly. She was cute when she was asleep. Or actually, especially when she was asleep. She was cute no matter what.

He lifted her up in his arms, gently laying her down on her bed. His eyes turned black, and suddenly she was in her pajama's. Reid pulled blanket over her body and tucked her in, before turning of the lights and walking downstairs, ready to yell at whoever would do anything that could disturb Rachel's happiness. Though he barely paid any attention to her in the past years, that had changed that year. And now, she was his sister. A sister no one who enjoyed life should mess with.

He closed the door behind him as soundless as he could.

* * *

Reid quickly discovered that his job for that night was done. Though Pogue and Chase had fought, something Rachel wouldn't be to happy with, they had made up right after. Chase could understand Pogue's worry, especially after what had happened with Aaron. And Pogue had decided that Chase seemed to be an alright guy. Sometimes a fight could really clear your mind.

So that only left Tyler, who, even though he felt immensely guilty for saying what he had said before, still didn't really like Chase. At least, not as much as he had done before. But Reid figured that it would be okay, as long as Chase wouldn't do something really stupid when Tyler was involved. Like making out with her.

"Yes, Kate, I know my reaction was stupid. I'm sorry, okay? But it's alright now, Chase and I are cool!" That was the last problem. Kate wasn't too happy about her boyfriend upsetting her friend. Reid was grinning as he leaned against the wall of the living room, listening to his friend as he tried to make it up to his girlfriend.

"Kate, I will apologize to Rachel as soon as possible, but she's asleep now. I'll do it tomorrow." Reid laughed, out loud this time, owing him a dirty look of Pogue. The blond boy simple smirked in return.

"Alright. See you tomorrow." Tyler and Caleb, who had been pretty bored since they didn't enjoyed Pogue's pleading as much as Reid did, looked up as soon as their friend hung up the phone.

"Worked things out?" Caleb asked immediately, ever the sensitive one. Pogue shrugged with a sad face.

"She says she'll forgive me as long as Rachel does."

"Could be worse." Reid stated with a grin. "She could have decided to ignore you for a week." Pogue threw a pillow at him, but Reid simply jumped aside.

"Almost. Maybe, someday, when I'm too old to move you'll finally be able to hit me. Night." Reid walked to his room wearing his favorite, triumphant smirk.

* * *

The next morning, all of the boys were feeling rather nervous. Pogue and Tyler were silently practicing their apologies, while Reid and Caleb were wondering why Rachel wasn't down yet. The girl usually woke up pretty early.

"You think something is wrong?" Caleb asked Reid softly, hoping Pogue and Tyler wouldn't hear them. He really didn't need their panicking input at the moment. Reid hesitated for a second, and then jumped up. He quickly grabbed a few pancakes, put them on a plate and walked out of the room. Caleb lifted his eyebrow. Sometimes he really didn't understand his younger brother.

"Rachel?" Rachel looked up from her laptop when she heard Reid's voice. She send him a quick smile, that only widened when she saw what he was holding. She had been awake for some time now and she was feeling a bit hungry, but she had been too afraid to go downstairs. She had no idea how Pogue and Tyler would react when they saw her, and she didn't think she was ready to find it out just yet.

"Morning." Reid greeted her while sitting down on the bed beside her. Rachel send him another smile and then closed her laptop. Reid silently handed her the plate and simply watched her as she started eating. He could see that she had been crying again, but he just couldn't understand why. He had actually believed he had solved all of her problems the other day.

"You alright?" He asked her, making her look up from her plate. She quickly nodded and put another bite. Reid lifted his eyebrow, not convinced.

"You're doing it again, you know." His voice was soft, gentle, caring. "You're hiding yourself again." This time, Rachel didn't look up. She just couldn't. Instead she just swallowed her bite, placed her plate beside her and handed her laptop to Reid. He opened it, looking at the file she had been working on. Her diary.

His eyes found hers, searching for permission. She gave him a quick nod and then grabbed her plate again. As Reid read about all her problems, she just finished her breakfast, though she couldn't really taste the things anymore. She felt nervous, scared about Reid's reaction to her problems.

Her diary wasn't like most people's diary's. Since Rachel was unable to talk about how she felt, she had finally decided to write it down to get it off her chest. So the file Reid was now reading was more of a enumeration of all her problems then a real diary.

"Rachel." She looked up at Reid again, with tears in her eyes, silently begging him to make it okay, like he always seemed to do. At first, it had been Tyler who she would pour her heart out to. After he started to act all weird, Reid and Chase took his place. And since Chase wasn't here at the moment, and he formed one of the problems, Reid would have to play her shrink for the day.

"You worry about school?" He asked her softly. Rachel looked down and watched her hands as they formed the answer.

"My grades are getting worse and worse, and miss Anderson said she was starting to feel worried." Reid's eyes darkened slightly.

"That woman seriously has a problem. Rachel, after all that happened in the past few weeks, I think you have a pretty good excuse." But Rachel shook her head.

"It happened before that. From the moment we started talking." She signed to him. Reid rolled his eyes.

"Your grades are still better then mine. But if you really want to, you could ask Caleb to help you." Rachel nodded and Reid grinned, clearly happy with himself. Then he looked back to the laptop, thinking about the other problems. The trial, the baby, Chase, Tyler… No wonder the girl was so stressed out

"Alright. I already called Chase, so he'll be here in a few minutes. So you can talk about the things between you two with him, that's something I really don't wanna know." Rachel smiled again, and again Reid felt very content with himself.

"And about Tyler; you can't take on the whole world by yourself. Give him some time to work things out and it'll be okay. Just like the other things. It will all work out fine, I promise you."

Rachel didn't really understand how he did it, but somehow, it all made sense when he said those things. She had told herself a million times that the trial would go fine, that the baby would be alright, but she just hadn't been able to bring herself to believe it. Until now.

Reid grinned as he saw her relax, and then he jumped up from the bed.

"Alright, time to get up. Tyler and Pogue are practically killing themselves because they're so afraid you won't forgive them. And as much as I like to see them suffer, I think it's enough now." Rachel smiled to him and then jumped out of bed, walking to her closet. Reid smiled softly and walked away.

"She'll be down in just a minute, fellas." He reassured his friends.

* * *

"Please just kill me now." Pogue muttered softly as he watched his little sister sitting on the couch beside Chase. Caleb and Reid grinned at each other as they watched their two friends suffering. Though they had both told Rachel they were okay with her dating Chase, something that was now official, they hadn't really grown used to watching her acting all in love and stuff. Not that there was anything weird about that, since they technically had only been dating for about one hour.

The bell rang, and Pogue and Tyler jumped up at exactly the same time. Both were happy with any excuse to leave the room, but unfortunately for them, Reid's father was faster.

"Good afternoon, mister Swinton." He greeted Rachel's lawyer. Rachel, who knew exactly who was coming, was feeling a bit nervous. Today, they would have a meeting to talk about the trial.

Chase hand gently touched her back, remembering her she wasn't alone in this. She looked up at him with a smile, grateful smile and he gave her a swift peck on the lips. Tyler growled softly, but Rachel didn't hear him. Reid did though, and he quickly elbowed his friend in the ribs.

"Shut it." He hissed softly.

"Hello Rachel. How are you?" Mister Swinton, or Daniel, greeted Rachel. She smiled up at him with a small smile and then nodded. He smiled back at her and then greeted the others. After that they all sat down around the kitchen table, where Daniel spread out his papers.

"Alright. Right now, it's actually looking good for us. Since all three of the boys swore they have never slept with you…" Rachel winced. "…you being pregnant brings them in an awkward predicament. And with the testimony of miss Snider and her friends and of Chase of course, it'll be hard for them to deny it. As soon as the paternity-test results are in, the police will probably want to interrogate them again. And after all I've heard about these boys, they don't seem to be very strong, mentally, I mean." Reid snorted, but Daniel just continued talking. "So I think we'll be able to convince at least one of them to testify against the others in exchange for a reduced sentence. So all in all, I think we have a pretty good chance."

Rachel sighted in relief, leaning against Chase who had his right arm wrapped around her.

"Told you so." Reid mouthed to her. She grinned at him, suddenly feeling happier then she had felt in weeks. Thinks were finally looking good for her.

* * *

**FINALLY! I wanna thank everyone for their well-wishes and reviews. I really appreciate it! And, even though it's a bit late: HAPPY NEW YEAR! **

**Alright, just a few things left to say. One, I'm looking for a beta-reader, so if you're interested, please PM me! Two: I'm thinking about changing the name and the summary of this story. As usually happens when I write a story, it never turns out the way I wanted it to. For example: When I started this story, I had in mind that Rachel would end up with Simon and **** that Pogue and Rachel wouldn't make things up until the end of the story,when he would see her dancing and would start to realize he really didn't know his little sister. So here's the new idea: **

**A hidden appearance:**

**She has always searched for love, for someone to look at her. But sometimes dreams don't turn out the way you want to, and now she finds herself somewhere she doesn't want to be. **

**So tell me what you think!**

**AND PLEASE: REVIEW! I'M BEGGING YOU! (yes, I know, I'm pathetic)  
**


	17. Chapter 16

**Stronger**

**

* * *

**_Staying strong holding on  
That's just what's going on  
And when I get it wrong  
I know that I'll survive_

_It's life- Ashley Tisdale_

_

* * *

_

"Rachel, could you please try to sit still?" Rachel scowled at her brother, at the exact moment Kate hit him upside the head.

"She has the right to be nervous. Now hush." Chase bit his lip to keep himself from laughing out loud, while Rachel sent Kate a huge, thankful smile. The girl grinned back.

"Rachel Parry?" Kate jumped up and took her friends hand, leading her to the assistant. "You are Rachel Parry?" The young woman asked Kate, who quickly shook her head.

"No, this is Rachel. I'm just the supporting friend." The woman laughed softly and then turned to Rachel, extending her hand.

"Hello Rachel. My name is Melinda, and I'm gonna do the tests today. Are you nervous?" Rachel nodded with a small, shy smile and then shook Melinda's hand. The woman smiled gently at her.

"Well, no reason for that. Please, follow me." She leaded Kate and Rachel to a small room, where she motioned for the two girls to sit down in the chairs.

"So." She started. "How long do you think you are pregnant? Do you know who the father is? Oh no, of course not. You also asked for a paternity test, right?" Kate groaned in herself. Great, of all the assistants in the world, they had to get the talkative, I-always-say-the-wrong thing one. She quickly jumped up and grabbed Melinda's arm, leading her slightly away from Rachel.

"She was raped." She whispered softly. "And she can't talk." The woman blinked for a second, immediately realizing her mistake. With a flustered face she turned back to Rachel.

"Right. I'll go get the equipment." She mumbled, before quickly walking out of the door. After all, no one likes to be confronted with their mistakes.

Rachel sighed softly. This was gonna be a long, hard day. Great.

* * *

**Rachel POV**

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* * *

**

My heart was beating. Alright, that sounds like something that happens every day. Actually, it really does happen every day. Every hour. Every minute. Every second. Yes, I confess, I was nervous.

The wood was hard, and very unpleasant to sit on. Every minute now, the judge would walk in, starting the thing that would probably give me nightmares for weeks. Ironically, it might also put my nightmares in jail. Confusing, isn't it? I was scared, terrified, petrified, afraid, anxious, filled with fear… Any other ideas to describe it?

From the other side of the room, Aaron was throwing me grins and looks that would no doubt haunt me in my dreams. I was trembling, although Mister Swinton was trying his best to calm me down. That turned out to be sort of hard when the person your trying to calm can't hear a single word your saying. I turned around, looking at my brother for help. Exactly for days ago, he had turned eighteen. No one had been in the mood to celebrate it, so we had all agreed to do that later. After the trial after today.

Today we would charge Aaron. Tomorrow, it would be Ryan's turn. Brody had already confessed, something Aaron and Ryan hadn't been to happy about.

Everyone had taken turns to reassure me, but no matter how many times they told me that everything would work out, I was still too pessimistic to believe in fairytales. But then again, I always was the person who said there was no difference between pessimistic and realistic. In my eyes, this would probably turn out to be the ultimate torture: To give friends to a girl who is loved by no one, to give her hope that everything will be okay, only to take it all away from her again. A part of me was still saying this was all just a dream, which would only make reality so much harder. Who knows, maybe I had actually died that time I tried to kill myself, meaning this was all just a way of hell to torture me.

And then there was my positive side, who had a slightly different story. In that version, I was not dreaming. This was reality there. There were people who loved me, who protected me. But every side came out with the same ending to the story. Bordy wouldn't testify after all. Aaron, Bordy and Ryan would be released from all charges. My parents would take me home, beat me to death and then hide me in a small basement, that they would fill with concrete afterwards. No one would ever remember Rachel, the girl who had lied, ever again.

Yes, I know. I've seen to much crime-series. And I should really focus on my homework more.

Small lesson: The moment you start to think of homework when you're doing something else, there is something wrong with you. Right now, my mind was leading me to the weirdest corners of my brains. Those corners were kind of pretty, though. They had all sorts of lights.

Just when I was wondering if I was really loosing it, the doors opened. Mister Swinton pulled me to my feet, and I took a deep breath, hoping it would calm me. It didn't, it felt as if there was too much dust in the air.

I don't you could really call my conscious during the trail. I just stared in front of me, without really seeing what was there. My brother, my boyfriend, my friends… they all told their stories. I had heard them a thousands times. Aaron's lawyers asked them some things, but I couldn't bring myself to listen, to the questions nor the answers.

And then it was my turn. Although I had felt frozen since the judge had entered, I now realized I had been shaking the entire time. When I stood up, I almost fell back down again. In some way, I managed to reach the witness boxes without falling down, though, and I quickly sat down again. A interpretor, who would translate the sign language to English, moved to stand beside me. Mister Swinton walked forward to start the questions. I knew what he would ask, and could answer without even bothering to listen to him. What had happened, how it had happened, who had done it. It was hard to go all over the story again, and at some points my hands were shaking too much too make it clear what I meant. But finally, I reached the part where I lost conscious. My story was over.

"No more questions, your honor." Mister Swinton told the judge, after which he sat down. Aaron's lawyer rose and walked towards me. I had been warned that his question would be without mercy, and I was scared. I knew he would use everything I said against me, that he would twist it into something I had never meant. Something that could let Aaron walk free.

"How do you know Aaron Abbott, miss Parry?" I didn't look at him as my hands moved to answer the question. Instead, I kept my eyes locked on my hands.

"We go to the same school." The interpretor translated calmly, focused on the job instead of the story. The Aaron's lawyer nodded in agreement, already knowing that. I was wondering where he was heading to.

"And your brother, he is on the swim team with Aaron, right?" I simply nodded. There was no translation needed for that part.

"And I've heard they have been in many fights?" My eyes narrowed, already knowing where he was going. But there was nothing I could do about it, besides answering the questions with great care.

"My brother usually stays out of the fights." That was true, or partially anyway. Pogue would only fight to help or defend his friends.

"But your brother and his friends, they aren't friends with Aaron Abbott, right?" Again I confirmed his words.

"Would you perhaps call them enemies?" I hesitated for a second. Then I decided that the yes/no time was over. This question deserved a real answer.

"They have never been friends, they have had their fights, that's true. But as far as I know, their fights have never been to serious. And I couldn't really tell you more about this, since it is their business, not mine." One point for me, I decided. There was no way he could say that I lied because my brother wanted to put his enemy in jail.

"Have you ever felt any romantic feelings for the accused?" Another easy question, though I was a bit disappointed he didn't act at least a bit disconcerted.

"Have you ever cut yourself?" Although it had been silent in the room before, now it felt like everything was frozen. I had expected this question, but still….

"On purpose? Once." Again, his next question followed without a moment of silence.

"Have you ever tried to kill yourself?"

"The time I cut myself, I almost died, yes."

"And was that on purpose?"

"Yes." A few people looked shocked, and I had to resist the urge to roll my eyes. What did they suspect, that I would be fine after all that had happened? I refused to be ashamed of something that seemed completely logical to me. Sure, I now realized it had been a mistake, but it wasn't the stupid sort of mistake. It was the confused one.

"Can you tell us what exactly happened?" I closed my eyes, gathering my thoughts before I would open my mind.

"It was a few days after… after I was raped." It was hard to put it into words, but I knew I had to. "In all honesty, I can't really tell you when exactly. I sort of lost track of time. I was scared that they would do it again." My hands were shaking, and I barely managed to form the words. But I refused to give up, and so my story went on.

"They had told me that it was my own fault, that I had asked for it in some way. They had said that I was a burden for everyone around me. After that, I could barely eat. I just sat in the corner of my room, and I felt the sadness of everyone. And I believed them. I really thought I was a burden."

My eyes flew up, searching for my brother. Our eyes met, and I could see the pain in them. I had never told him this. Then I continued, trying to push the tears away. It hurt to think of it again, to feel that pain again.

"So I figured it would be better to just end it. My brother had brought me some food earlier, with some cutlery, including a knife. So I grabbed it and tried to cut open my wrist. After that I lost conscious pretty quick."

A few people were now crying, including myself, Kate and Sarah. Even the jury seemed effected by my story. Aaron's lawyer had worked against himself. He had wanted to create the picture of a mentally unstable person, who hurt herself to feel better. Instead, he had gotten a girl everyone felt sorry for. Two points for Rachel.

I searched the crowd for Lizzy, knowing that she had promised she'd be here. I needed her right now. She was strong, stronger than anyone else I had ever met. I knew she wouldn't be crying. She was probably thinking about ways to kill Aaron at the moment.

"And after that? Have you ever cut yourself again?" He was desperate now, and I couldn't blame him. The Abbott's had probably paid him a fortune to defend their son, but there was nothing he could do. All the evidence, all the witnesses, everything was against Aaron.

"No. I made a promise…" My eyes flew away from Lizzy again, going to Tyler instead. He sent me a small, reassuring smile. The corners of my mouth curled up a little bit, and I smiled back at him. "To a friend." I completed my sentence.

Aaron's lawyer walked away, with a small mutter saying he had no more questions. I walked back to my seat, feeling a bit better. The worst thing was done, and Aaron was as good as convicted.

"I have never slept with Rachel Parry." I heard his words, and had to resist the urge to smile. He was a dead man now.

Mister Swinton didn't even bother to ask him anything, and instead just called the next witness: Bordy. The boy told the story, exactly like it had happened. He looked broken, something I could only feel joy about. What can I say, I'm not really a forgiving person, I guess. Although, I wouldn't really like to be in his place at the time. The looks Aaron was throwing him were dangerously close to lethal.

Again, Aaron's lawyer did some desperate attempts to bring Bordy of his statement, but it didn't work. And then the next, and last, witness was up. My doctor. He quickly went through the simple things, my cuts, bruises, beatings… And then the last thing came up.

"…And she is pregnant." I imagined Aaron paling, but I was too scared to look at him.

"Has their been a paternity test?" Mister Swinton asked with a triumphant smile on his face. My doctor nodded.

"Yes, there has. Aaron Abbott is the biological father of the child." After that he turned to said boy, adding a rather sarcastic "Congratulations." I sighed softly as I fell back in the bench. Aaron's statement, claiming he had never slept with me, was now a proven lie. There was no way he would get out of this one.

* * *

Apparently, happy endings do exist, I thought as I looked around me. Aaron, Bordy and Ryan were all in jail, where they would be for a very long time. My baby was healthy, and hadn't suffered from any sort of damage, despite my near-death experience. It was a miracle. A beautiful, perfect miracle. And on top of it, the greatest thing of it all: My parents had nothing to say over me anymore.

It was Pogue's party, his eighteen birthday. And from now on, he was my legal guardian, after he threatened my parents with a lawsuit. We would stay with the Garwin's until graduation, and after that… well, it was still far away. I knew that my pregnancy would be a difficult thing, especially now that everyone knew about it. Even though they were convicted, there would still be people believing in their innocence. It would be hard, but I knew I could handle it. After all, I had survived years of being invisible, hidden in the shadow of my brother. But that was the past: I had made my appearance. I was Rachel Parry, the girl who had gone through hell but had made it back. And I wasn't alone anymore: I had friends, people who cared about me. People who loved me.

"Rachel, want another drink?" I looked up at Lizzie, waking from my thoughts. I blinked and then smiled, shaking my head. When I looked around me, searching for my boyfriend. For some reason, that word sounded really good to me. It was practically impossible for me to call him Chase now. Always boyfriend. I could be a bit pathetic, I guess.

The room, that had been filled with people an hour ago, was now almost completely silent. Though the radio was still on, the music wasn't as loud as before. And everyone was still.

Kate and Pogue lay in each others arms, enjoying each others company without making a sound. I was just happy they weren't making out, like Sarah and Caleb. There was only so much I could cope with. Reid and Tyler were thumb-wrestling, the weirdest game in the universe if you ask me. Lizzy sat beside me, simply enjoying the music. The girl was awesome, and knew exactly when I needed some peace and when I needed someone to distract me. Now was defiantly a peace moment.

But Chase was nowhere to find, so I stood up. I needed his presence, to complete the thing that would no doubt turn out to be the perfect memory. I walked to the kitchen, knowing that would be the most logical place for him to be.

He was there. As soon as I opened the door, I saw him standing there. He heard the door open, and turned around. My eyes widened.

The chair fell to the ground, but I didn't hear the noise that had to be there. All of my attention was focused on one point: Chase, standing in front of me, his eyes as black as the night.

* * *

**And here it is! I want to apologize for the long wait (again) but can't promise the next one will be up sooner. I have never been to a trail (much less an American trial), so if you notice any mistakes, please tell me. I hope you like this chapter, and please review. Otherwise I might just make Chase end the whole story in the next chapter... (imagine evil laugh for the effects, please?) **


	18. Chapter 17

**Stars**

* * *

_You are a dream come true_  
_ You are everything to me_  
_ You are so beautiful_  
_ You are my reason to be_

_-You are my reason to be, Saint Seiya_

_

* * *

_

It had been a difficult couple of days. The trials, hearing his sister explain that she had tried to kill herself to make it better for _him_… Defiantly not the best moments of his life. But, as he had once heard someone say: The higher your mountains, the more beautiful the view from the top. And that had been true: the past days had felt like heaven. Rachel had laughed out loud again, something that hadn't happened since the paternity test. She and Chase were happy, and he had to admit: They made a great couple. The fact that Chase still didn't have any bruises said enough about his behavior for the past few days.

Yesterday, he, Tyler, Reid, Caleb and Chase had worked on a small list of people who might bother Rachel about the pregnancy, or other things. Mandy had made the first place. They had silently decided that it was their job to keep all those people away from her.

So now, every one who had ever heard Rachel was far away from her. Things actually were looking good for them and for once Pogue had the courage to believe in a happy ending.

He and Kate had been on a date yesterday, to celebrate his birthday, like they did every day. That had been their first date since Rachel had been raped, since he had been too afraid to leave her alone, or with someone else.

Pogue heard something fall on the kitchen. Though he realized there was nothing unusual about that, he still had this feeling in the pit of his stomach that there was something going on. Something he should check out. That feeling only grew when he realized that Rachel and Chase were both missing from the living room. He stood up, not hearing Kate's curious question about where he was going. Instead, he simply walked to the kitchen.

The door was open. A chair lay on the ground. Rachel's eyes looked straight in his. She looked frightened, but before Pogue had a chance to ask what was wrong, Chase pulled Rachel in his arms. His eyes turned black.

Pogue screamed his sister's name as she disappeared before his eyes.

* * *

When I woke up, it was dark around me. I tried to remember what had happened, but the memories just came up blank. Slowly my eyes adjusted to the darkness, allowing me to see again. Or at least, to see some shadows.

I laid on a bed, that seemed to be way too big for just one person, I couldn't even see the edge to my right. The one to the left, however, was way too close. I nearly fell down when I turned to see what was there.

The room was large as well, and the furniture was strangely familiar. I almost said it was the room I had back home. The wallpaper, the closet, everything was the same. There was only one difference: And extra door. While my room at the Garwin's estate had two doors, one leading to the hallway and one leading to my bathroom, this one had three. And, though I was really curious to see where it would lead to, I was too scared to actually get off the bed.

And of course, just when I thought that, the door opened. I felt my eyes widen, and I pulled my knees up to my chest, as to protect myself. A shadow, framed by the light coming from the other room, walked inside. When I saw his face, all my memories immediately came back.

"Ah! You're awake! Finally, I was starting to get a bit worried." I stared at him, too confused to actually say something. He walked to the bed and sat down beside me. I tried to back away from him, but he pulled me in his arms. I didn't push him away, though I didn't know why exactly. Maybe it was because I was scared of what he would do. Or maybe it was because I still saw him as my boyfriend, even though he had taken every logical part of my life away. Pogue, Reid, Tyler and Caleb were the warlocks: That was just the way it was. But still he had magic, making me doubt every word he said. And maybe it was just because I suddenly felt like I was paralyzed.

"Don't worry, my love. It'll be alright. You're save with me." Big mistake. My muscles immediately started to work again, and I pushed him off of me.

"I was save where I was!" I snapped at him. "You kidnapped me!"My hand flew up to my throat, as surprise appeared in my eyes.

_I could talk again. _

Chase saw my surprise, and couldn't suppress a smile.

"I healed you." He told me softly, clearly expecting me to thank him for it. But I didn't. Even though he had healed me, giving me the ability to speak again, he _had _kidnapped me. He had knocked me out. I refused to forgive him for that. When he saw the fury in my eyes, the happy look in his was replaced by one filled with regret.

"I'm sorry for making you loose conscious. But there was no other way." I whispered softly, while extending his hand to take mine. I pulled away and jumped off the bed, trying to get as far away from him as possible. But before I could reach the door Chase had entered through, it slammed close again. I jumped back, surprised by the sudden movement, and then turned to face Chase again.

"I want to go home." I whispered softly. My voice was shaking, and the tears appeared in my eyes. The darkness in Chase's eyes started to fade and he looked at me with compassion.

"I know." He simply said. "But you can't." I couldn't control my tears anymore. They glided down my face. I took a step away from him again, and my back touched the wall. My hands covered my face as I slid down, sitting down on the ground. Again, I pulled my legs up to my chest and I started to sob. Chase walked to me and he lowered himself next to me. I didn't even try to get away from him, knowing it had no use. He put his arms around me, but I didn't lean into him like I used to. I kept my previous position, hoping he would realize that just because I didn't run away, that didn't mean I wanted to be with him.

"There are a few things you have to know." Chase started. His soft voice almost made me relax, until I realized what he had done again. He started to speak again.

"Ipswich was found my five families: Danvers, Parry, Garwin, Simms and Putnam." I found myself listening to his words, although I tried to pretend I didn't care about him and everything he said. "During the witch trials, the Putnam son, named John, was betrayed by his brothers and he was burned at the stake. Just before he died, he was able to impregnate a widow in her sleep. Nine months later, their son was born, knowing nothing about his heritage. The widow's name was Agnes Goodwin-Pope. Her son's name was Hagen.

When I turned eighteen, I ascended. During my ascension, I was in the car with my parents. They both died. I went to look for my biological parents, and I found my father. My mother had died when I was two. My real last name was Pope." He went silently, waiting for my reaction. But I just didn't know how to respond. I had never learned about the history of the power, unlike my brother, but I had heard about the fifth family during history, but I had never bothered to ask anyone if they had the power as well, something I felt pretty stupid about now. After all, I had also known he had been convicted for witchcraft. Yes, not thinking about the possibility they had the power had been really stupid.

A new question entered my mind. For a second I hesitated about asking Chase. But my curiosity got the best of me, and I opened my mouth.

"Then why did you come to Ipswich? Why didn't you say anything?" And why did he befriend us? Had kidnapping me been his plan from the beginning? I just didn't know what to think about him anymore.

Chase sighed softly and slumped down against the wall beside me. I looked at him, curious, and then I realized I had stopped crying. My curiosity had banished my fear away.

"I wanted to tell you, I really did. But I was scared you would tell your brother." He told me, but his explanation only gave me more questions. Luckily for me, I didn't have to ask further. He starting talking again.

"When I found my father, he was in his forties. He looked as if he was in the hundred. At first, I didn't even believe he was my father." I still didn't understand what that had to do with my brother, but Chase wasn't done yet. "He told me about the Aging. You see, I had never heard about the Curse. When he told me about it, it was already too late. I was addicted. He also told me about the betrayal of the covenant. And he told me about how I could save my life."

I frowned. Though I didn't know much about the power, it did seem weird to me that Caleb and the others would be so worried about a curse that could be cured.

"How?" I asked him, now throwing all caution away. I needed the answers.

"More power. One of the boys has to will his power to me." Chase's voice suddenly was as cold as ice, making me shiver. Slowly, an idea started to rise in my head.

"Why don't you will your own power away? That way it wouldn't age you, right?" When I saw Chase's face, I realized I had made a very stupid mistake. Not the dangerous sort, just the idiotic kind.

"They really haven't told you much about the power, have they?" I immediately shook my head. "It is your life, Rachel. When you will your power away, you die."

The truth hit me like a hammer, and I slapped Chase in the face, surprising him.

"You want to kill one of them? " I screamed at him, as the tears started streaming again. "You wanted to kill one of my brothers?" The pain of betrayal made cry again, and I tried to slap him again. But this time he grabbed my wrist and pulled it back down. As I tried to pull myself free, I realized something else.

"So that's it then, huh? You need their power, and I'm the bait to get it! That's why you even bothered to talk to me." During the end of my sentence, all the strength left me and I collapsed. Chase caught me and pulled me in his arms.

"That's not true." He whispered in my ear. "I love you, Rachel. I really do. I would never hurt you." I shook my head, unable to believe him. For a few seconds he just looked me in the eyes, trying to convince me of his honesty, but finally he turned away from with a deep sigh.

"Go back to sleep. It's late." His words made me realize I had no idea what time it was, but before I could ask it he was already gone. I didn't go back to the bed, refusing to follow his commands. Instead, I just leaned against the wall, trying to keep myself awake. But the more I tried it, the more I realized just how tired I was. It was just too much: Just when I had thought I had it all, that my happy ending had come, it was all taken away again. My thoughts leaded me through the conversation again, focusing on all the things I wanted to forget. My boyfriend was going to kill my brothers. Everyone I had ever loved.

The fear in me started to grow, until I suddenly couldn't breath anymore. The darkness around me seemed to choke me, and suddenly all the shadows came alive, running around me, playing with my mind. I wanted to scream, but didn't, knowing that only Chase would come for me. Unless he had something better to do, of course. But my greatest fear was coming alive: I was alone again. Just like I had been in the forest.

And then suddenly I realized how wrong I was, how wrong I had been before. I wasn't alone. I had never been alone, not since they had attacked me. Aaron, in his quest to destroy me, had given me the one thing I needed to survive:

Someone to live for.

My hands lowered to stroke my belly, and slowly I felt myself calming again. The oxygen returned to my lungs, and softly I made a promise to my reason.

_I'll get us out of here. We'll be alright. _

There was no way I was going to let my baby get hurt.

After that, it got easier to stay awake. At first I tried to figure out an escape plan, but that soon turned out to be useless. All the doors and windows were locked. After a couple of seconds thinking about other things to think about, as weird as it may sound, I suddenly realized I was in a very uncomfortable position. So I stood up, pulled the curtains in front of the windows open and sat down in the window-sill. I looked outside, to the stars, and softly started to learn my baby the few names of the stars I could remember. After that I remembered a song Will had written for a girl who had died in a car crash years ago. With that song, I also realized how long it had been since I had really spoken to my Boston friends. I needed to visit them again, I decided.

When the band had played the song, it had broken my heart. It was about hope and love, and those were just things I couldn't believe in. At least, not back then. I softly started to sing, and realized it now had the opposite effect: My heart was healing as the hope returned.

_They say hope rules the people and light gives life,_

_That when the sun is away, all is lost. _

_But I never really listened to the lessons taught in school_

_So I came to a conclusion taught by life itself: _

_Every night the sun goes down and we all go to sleep_

_Every night the hope disappears, leaving people to cry alone_

_But that is something I won't accept, something I won't do._

_Cause whatever happens, I'll stand strong!_

_You taught me to live, you taught me the life_

_You taught me how the stars will always shine._

_You taught me to love, how to give everything_

_So I will give it all to you! _

_You were the one who made me dance, made me sing,_

_And for the first time I laughed out loud. _

_You were the one who was everything for me_

_You were everything I wanted to be. _

_You gave me hope when everything was lost. _

_Made my smile when everything was dark. _

_You showed me that there is always light_

_And told me how to find it, every night. _

_You taught me to live, you taught me the life_

_You taught me how the stars will always shine._

_You taught me to love, how to give everything_

_So I will give it all to you! _

_And now your gone, leaving me alone, _

_But I'll love you till the end. _

_And one day, I know, I'll be there with you_

_And we will touch the star together. _

_Come with me, come with me_

_And fly to the stars tonight_

_For you I'll give everything_

_And with you I'll live forever._

_You taught me to live, you taught me the life_

_You taught me how the stars will always shine._

_You taught me to love, how to give everything_

_So I will give it all to you! _

_So come, come, come_

_And touch the light!_

_Come, come, come. _

_Let's make it this life right. _

_Come, come with me._

_Make me live again_

_Come, come, with me,_

_Show me the meaning of love. _

_Come, come, come now!_

_Let's fly to the stars!_

_Come, come, come now!_

_Together we will shine. _

I sung the words softly to my baby, a name entered my head. Astria. It meant star, and it was perfect for my daughter. If it would be a girl, of course. After a few minutes of thought, I came up with a second name. Brianna, which meant strength. I wanted my daughter to be strong. So Astria Brianna it would be. Or Brianna Astria, I'd let my friends decide on that one.

Then there was the possibility it would be a boy. There was no way I was going to give my son a girl's name. Or the other way around, of course.

Brian meant strength as well, and I liked the name, so that one was easy. The second name was harder. Aston meant star, but somehow that just didn't feel right. So I spent some more time considering names, until I finally realized how stupid I was.

Reid. My protector, one of my best friends… Yes, that would be his name. The second one, to avoid general confusion.

I smiled softly to myself, happy with my decisions, and then finally fell asleep, knowing I'd be able anything the world would sent for me now.

I would survive this. For my child.

* * *

**Yes! Only six days! Again, I'm sorry it isn't that long, but I hope you like it anyway. The song was written by me, so please tell me what you think of it!**

**And just because I don't believe everyone reviews: IF YOU REVIEW NOW, YOU'LL GET AN EXCLUSIVE PART OF THIS STORY! I won't post that online. So, please review!  
**


	19. Chapter 18

**Live or die

* * *

**

_A star shines in all of us we'll search for all our lives  
One day we'll find a way and a reason to survive  
Cry for the day to return, life no one can understand  
We all face our fears in the world  
We all hold our place in the universe  
For eternity_

_ Reasons to live – Dragonforce_

* * *

Sarah, Kate and Lizzie were walking through the small room, slowly discovering the world their friends had hidden from them for so long. Pogue was pacing up and down the room, unable to sit still. Caleb was the complete opposite; sitting in his chair while reading the Book of Damnation, on of the two things that could give them information on their newly found enemy.

Meanwhile, Reid and Tyler were breaking into the Provost's office, to find the second thing: Chase Collins' file. While Tyler was reading the boys file, Reid kept guard, while cursing himself. Of all the boys, he had been the one to encourage Rachel. If he hadn't done that, she would still be with them, save.

"Reid!" The blond boy immediately turned around, facing his friend, who held the file in his hand.

"He was adopted. His real name was Chase Pope. And hear this; his parents died in a car crash at his eighteenth birthday!" Reid lifted an eyebrow. Though the car crash was interesting, it didn't prove anything they didn't know already. And he really didn't see what was so interesting about the name. Tyler saw the lack of understanding in his friends eyes and quickly explained it.

"Pope was one of the names in the Book of Damnation. She claimed that John Putnam came to her as an incubus in a dream." Reid's eyes widened. Sure, that could be a coincidence, but at least it gave them something to go with.

"Great. Put that thing away, and let's go!" He told Tyler, not wanting to waste any time while Rachel was in the hands of a warlock. Tyler quickly nodded and turned around to put the file's away. Unfortunately, he had forgotten about the chair behind him. The sound of the falling object echoed through the dark building, and both boys shared a worried look. This was not the time to be caught doing something illegal.

"Quickly!" Reid hissed, and Tyler quickly placed the file back where it belonged. Reid turned around, facing the door and waiting for it to open. And it did.

A beam of light fell on the floor as Reid's eyes turned black. Tyler followed his friends example. For one second, they looked straight into the night guard's eyes, and then they both disappeared, leaving the night guard to wonder if it was time to retire yet.

"Pope." Reid said, while appearing in the lair. Sarah and Kate both screamed, while Lizzie's eyes widened for a second. Caleb looked up from the Book with a confused expression.

"Pope? As in Goodwin-Pope?" Reid rolled his eyes while flopping down in a chair.

"You tell me, o fearless leader. I just know it was the name of Chase's biological parents." Caleb's eyes widened as he finally realized the truth.

"Of course." He whispered softly. "How could we have missed that?" Twelve eyes looked at him with an expression that clearly said 'we're still missing it'. Caleb sighed softly and started to explain.

"Agnes Goodwin-Pope was a widow who claimed that John Putnam came to her as an incubus in her dreams." He looked down at the Book of Damnation and started leaving through it. As soon as he stopped, he started talking again. "She had a son, Hagen Pope, who was born ten months after the death of her husband."

Sarah gasped for a breath. "You can impregnate someone in a dream?" She asked full of unbelief. This remark would normally have been the cause of a lot of jokes, especially for Reid, but this time Caleb simply nodded.

"Chase is the descendant of John Putnam." He whispered softly.

"Congratulations. And now, the million dollar question: Where is Rachel?" Again, Sarah and Kate screamed, but this time they weren't the only ones to be startled. All four boys jumped forward, quickly pulling the girls behind them to form a protective shield between their enemy and their friends.

"Ah, that's so cute!" Chase exclaimed in a girly voice. Pogue eyes turned black and a huge ball of energy flew to Chase. But the boy simply caught it between his hands.

"Again, very cute. Not so effective, though. Is that really the best you can do?" He threw it back, throwing Reid and Tyler back into the girls. All five fell down. For one second, Caleb looked at his friends, and he realized there was no way they would win the fight. Chase was strong, and he couldn't attack him and keep his friends save at the same time. So when Pogue moved to make another attack, Caleb stopped him by placing his hand on Pogue's shoulder.

"Wait." He whispered, before continuing out loud. "What do you want with Rachel?" For a second, he could see an emotion in Chase's eyes beside the derision, but when Chase answered, he used the same mocking voice as he had used before.

"Now, what would I want with Rachel? I mean, it's clear _you _don't want anything with her!" Reid and Tyler stood back up again, taking their places beside Pogue and Caleb.

"What do you mean?" Tyler hissed angrily. Chase lifted one eyebrow, looking at him with contempt, before replying.

"Well, let's see. You've known her all your lives, but still you ignored her until a few months ago. And even then, you didn't listen to her. It all centered around your lives, and she was just an adornment for your perfect lives. It was only when she was raped, when she was really interesting, that you showed real interest. Why was that? Was it because you could suddenly use her, that acting like the perfect, protective brother would make you seem more perfect or something? Admit it, she means nothing to you. Otherwise, you would have looked out for her better. She would never have been raped. To you, she was just invisible, hidden between your beautiful appearances." Caleb frowned when he heard the fury in Chase's voice. They boy really did care about Rachel. He took that as a good thing, knowing that meant Rachel would probably be save. But when Pogue moved to attack Chase again, he quickly put away his thoughts and followed his brother's example, as did Reid and Tyler.

But Chase simply grinned and his eyes turned black. Kate screamed when she felt his hands on her shoulders.

"Move and she dies, boys." Chase told them with a innocent smile. They froze, all asking themselves the same question; was Chase really capable of killing anyone? The answer wasn't that hard to figure out.

"Why do you care about Rachel so much?" Tyler asked, unable to hide the jealousy from his voice. He just wish he was able to deny Chase's words, but he knew they were true, or at least partially. They could have saved Rachel. They could have been nicer to her, all those years. But the truth was that they had just never really realized what they were doing to her. She had just been Pogue's little sister, not a part of the covenant, not part of anything important to them. In their eyes, they had been really nice to her by taking her to all those parties. Of course, that had been before they realized she had never wanted to go to those in the first place. Before they realized they always forgot about her as soon as they came her, leaving her in a crowd of people she didn't know. Chase was right: They had been assholes to her. It was a miracle that she had forgiven them that easy, something they really didn't deserve. Not after all those times they had left her at a party, because they had wanted to go but couldn't find her, telling themselves that she probably had just hitched a ride with someone else without telling them.

But Chase simply looked at him and shrugged.

"I don't know. Guess I can relate or something. After all, I was your brother. And you never cared about me either." At least now Tyler could call him a liar.

"We would have helped you! But we didn't even know you existed. If you had told us…"

"Bullshit!" It was the first time Chase really screamed. Before, during his rant about the neglection of Rachel, he had at least managed to keep a calm face. This time, it was turned into a furious expression. "That's bullshit! You could've known the Putnam line hadn't died! Magic doesn't just die, you know! But you just choose to ignore it, to maintain your perfect little life! Just as you ignored Rachel!" Caleb narrowed his eyes as he opened his mouth.

"So that's what you want? Revenge? You're going to kill us all because we didn't take care of someone we didn't know existed?" Chase was silent for a second, trying to calm himself. Then he shook his head.

"Partially, yes. But there is more. You see, I never learned about the consequences of using, so I got addicted. And since I don't want to die, I want one of you to will me his power." Caleb's hands turned into fists.

"Never." He hissed. Chase sighed softly and slowly shook his head.

"Caleb, Caleb, when will you ever learn? This wasn't a choice, you see. It's not something you do or don't do. You do it. Or Pogue does, I don't care which one of you two. But if you don't, I'll make you watch everyone you love die a slow and painful death." Kate whimpered softly, but Chase ignored her. "I'll start with your father. That should be easy, don't you think? Dear old Gorman will be right after that. And then your mother will die. And then their mothers." He nodded towards Reid and Tyler. "And then their fathers. And then, after your whole family is gone, I'll start with your friends. People you go to school with, people you talk with, your girlfriends… they will all die. And you know what the beautiful thing is? I don't care about which one of your friends dies first. As soon as their away from you, when you can't protect them, they'll die. All of them. And every time you bury someone, you'll know it is your fault. That you could've saved him. And then, when there's no one left to care about, when you are to afraid to leave the house, to talk to anybody in fear of what I will do to them, you'll come to beck me to kill you. And then I will, very slowly, very painfully. And just before you die, I'll make you will me your power."

Chase disappeared. Kate fell onto her knees, sobbing softly. Pogue jumped forward, pulling her into his arms and stroking her hair softly.

"Shhh…" he whispered softly. "It's alright. He's gone."

"Putnam Barn, tomorrow night when the sun goes down. Be there." The voice echoed through the small room, causing everyone inside to shiver. Pogue looked up from his girlfriend, meeting Caleb's eyes with his. The eldest of the four brothers gave a soft nod and Pogue bowed his head.

Tomorrow, one member of the covenant would die.

* * *

Lizzie was pacing the room, muttering softly to herself, as the others tried their best to ignore her.

"Liz." Reid finally said, realizing that there was no way she would shut up anytime soon. "Sit down, please. You're making me nervous." Lizzie turned to him with a glare.

"I'M MAKING YOU NERVOUS?" She yelled angrily. "My best friend is captured by some mentally disturbed person and you are all just SITTING THERE!" Her six friends winced because of her loud voice, but she clearly didn't care.

"You are all just waiting for him to do something! Why don't you do something? Use those powers of you for something useful, shit-damn-it! Go find Rachel!" Reid and Tyler shared a look, before standing up. They grabbed Lizzie's hand, pulled her to a chair and pushed her down on it.

"Listen, Liz." Reid told her softly. "We can't find people, unless they are using the power. So we can't find Rachel." For a second Lizzie just looked at them, eyes filled with unbelief. Then she groaned softly and rolled her eyes.

"Typical. Don't you guys have brains or something?" Six pairs of eyes turned to her, all filled with curiosity. Lizzie saw them and sighed softly.

"Chase took Rachel." She said, talking very slowly, as if she was explaining something to a child. "Chase has power. Chase is addicted and had to use. Now, how would you find Rachel if you can only find someone who is using?" She glared at Reid, daring him to question her logic. But Reid turned away from her, facing Caleb instead. His eyes were wide as he silently asked Caleb for approval. Caleb stared at Lizzie in shock, wondering why he hadn't thought about that. It was quite easy.

"You're a genius." He told her, before his eyes turned black. Pogue, Reid and Tyler quickly followed his example, while the girls looked on, feeling anxious. They needed some answers, some hope that the boys would win this fight.

The eight black eyes turned back to their original color at the exact same moment.

"Boston!" The exclaimed at once. Lizzie, Kate and Sarah sighed in relief, while Caleb turned to his brothers.

"Reid, Tyler, stay here to keep the girls save. Pogue, come with me." He commanded. Before Reid had a chance to object, Pogue and Caleb disappeared.

"Good luck, fellas." He whispered softly, crossing his fingers.

The fight had begun. And finally, Chase was beginning to loose his control over the whole situation.

* * *

Rachel looked down at the dress she was wearing. It was a light pink, strapless dress, with a red flower between her breasts. She would have loved it, if it weren't for the fact that Chase had given it to her, forcing her to wear it. Now, she was sitting at the table with him, trying her best not to look at him. Something he was making very hard.

"Rachel." His voice sounded commanding, and she shrunk a little bit. He sighed impatiently.

"Look at me!" Though she could hear the anger in the commandment, she still refused to look at him. The clashing of the chair made her head fly up, but suddenly, Chase was no where to be seen. She screamed in shock when she suddenly felt two hands on her upper arms, pulling her up from her chair. They made her turn around, after which one hand took her chin and pulled her face up. She looked straight in Chase's eyes, hers filled with fear and tears.

For a while Chase just looked at her, searching for something, though she didn't know what that something was. Maybe love, something that proved she cared about him. She knew that, if that was what he wanted to see, he would never find it. Apparently, he realized that as well.

His lips crashed against hers. She tried to back away, but his arms refused to give her freedom as they went up and down her arms. He was holding her to tide, and her arms were starting to hurt. Then finally he pulled away from her and she backed away from him, around the table.

"Why do you keep pushing me away?" Chase whispered softly. The vulnerability in his eyes almost made Rachel feel sorry, but she pushed it away. She wasn't the one who should be feeling sorry.

"You kidnapped me." Rachel hissed. "You're hurting me!" She looked at her arms, where she could see his handprints. Chase followed her eyes and gasped.

"Rachel…" He whispered softly. His eyes flew up to meet his again, but she turned her head around. And then suddenly, he was standing right in front of her again, taking her hands in his.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, but Rachel pulled her hands away. Immediately, he raised his hand and he hit her in the face.

Rachel fell, bringing her hand up to touch her right cheek. Chase looked down at her, almost with surprise, but when he took a step forward, she backed away from him.

"Stay away from me." She whimpered softly. Chase didn't listen as he kneeled down beside her, taking her face in his hands and caressing her cheeks.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered softly as he wiped her tears away. "I promise I will never hurt you again. I'm so sorry!" Rachel cried, but no longer tried to back away from him. She didn't have the strength to run anymore, knowing he would always catch her.

And then suddenly, everything turned around. Chase was hit with a ball of energy, surprising him and knocking him far away from Rachel, into the wall.

"Rachel!" She looked up, her eyes filled with surprise. She looked up at her brother. For a second, she just sat there, unable to believe what was happening. Then she jumped up and threw her arms around her brother's neck. He pulled her closer, softly stroking her back.

"It's alright." He whispered softly. "It's going to be alright. I'll get you out of here."

"Don't touch her!" Chase threw an energy ball towards Pogue, but Caleb intercepted it, catching it between his hands.

"Take her out of her!" He yelled at Pogue, while throwing the ball back at Chase. "I'll deal with him!" Rachel looked up at her brother, her eyes filled with fear.

"He needs you." She whispered softly. Pogue hesitated for a second, but then nodded. He pushed Rachel against the wall, where she quickly sat down.

"Stay there." Pogue told her quickly. "I'll go and help Caleb." Rachel quickly nodded, and then watched her brother run to help his friend.

The fight between Caleb and Chase probably wouldn't have taken that long. Chase was strong, way stronger than Caleb, so Caleb knew he didn't stand a chance. But now Pogue was there to back him up, his chances were considerably better. They had spread out, standing in front of each other, with Chase between them. That way, Chase could only see one attack at a time. But Chase kept disappearing, after which he always managed to hit either Pogue or Caleb by surprise, by appearing somewhere behind them. And so, the two teams were practically even; the fight could go on forever that way.

_Pogue!_

Pogue looked up when he heard Caleb's voice in his head, and he gave a quick nod to indicate he heard it.

_You attack him, and keep doing that. Meanwhile, I'm going to try to get closer. _

This time, Pogue didn't bother nodding. Instead, he simply started throwing energy ball after energy ball. Chase managed to duck most of them, but it still kept him busy, through which he didn't realize Caleb was slowly getting closer to him. Dangerously close.

Suddenly a energy ball hit him in the back. While he screamed in pain, Pogue ran forward, placing his hands on Chase's chest. Both boys allowed their energy to run through Chase. They boy screamed out in pain, while all his muscles were straining. And then, he fell down on the floor.

Pogue and Caleb looked down on their enemy, as the realization of their victory slowly spread through their brains. It was hard to grasp, but they had managed: Chase Collins was defeated.

"Is he dead?" Rachel's small voice surprised the two boys. Caleb blinked surprised.

"You can talk." He stated the obvious. Rachel nodded, her eyes still focused on the figure laying on the ground. Pogue extended his hand to her, and she walked towards him, taking it. He pulled her in his arms again.

And then Chase moaned in pain. Rachel jumped back in fear, while Pogue took a protective stand in front of her. Caleb kneeled down beside the boy.

"You've lost." He simply stated. Chase looked up at the boy that had once been his friend. He knew he had lost, and he knew there was no way in winning ever again. His eyes met Rachel's, and he saw the fear and the pain in them. And finally he realized how wrong he had been all the time.

He had thought she loved him, but she had only loved the picture he had created for her.

He had thought she would learn to love the real him, if he tried hard enough, but instead he had only frightened her more.

He had thought he would save her by killing her brothers, but he would've killed her through it. She couldn't live with just him. Not in real life. Only in the world he had created in his mind.

His eyes went back to Caleb, who was frowning, trying to figure his enemy out. But he couldn't, because there was no way to understand Chase. He loved Rachel, but would hurt her to win her love. He was friends with the covenant, but was also willing to kill them. And now he was defeated, he was giving up instead of fighting on, instead of trying to escape, like Caleb had expected him to do.

"I will keep coming back, you know." Chase told him. Caleb nodded in agreement. He had figured that much, but he didn't know what to do about it. Chase was weak, unable to fight, and Caleb couldn't just kill him. But he couldn't let him go either, because he wouldn't ever be save again that way. Chase's threat would always hang around him, around everyone he loved. He couldn't let that happen.

He looked up at Pogue, searching for advice, but his friend looked just as helpless as he did. Chase looked at both of them, taking in their expressions, and realizing they wouldn't grand him his final wish. They wouldn't kill him. But he didn't want to live. His parents were gone, he had killed them. The girl he loved hated him, he had chased her away. There was nothing left to live for.

When he opened his mouth again, Pogue and Caleb stared at him in shock. His final words proved the thing nothing else could prove. His love for Rachel.

"I will you my power."

* * *

**A pretty long chapter, without waiting to long. Aren't you proud of me? Prove it and review! Especially if you want to know who gets the power... And no, I promise it isn't as obvious as you think.**

**Oh, and BTW: I'm an idiot. In case your wondering why, in the last two chapters Rachel was talking. Anyone thinks there's something wrong with that? So I've chanced a few things: During the trail, a interpretor was standing beside her to translate everything, and after the kidnapping, Chase healed Rachel's throat, allowing her to speak again. I was planning on that from the beginning, just forget to actually write it down. Trust me, it isn't the stupidest thing I've done these days. Yesterday, I threw a dishcloth in the garbage-can. I'm a bit tired these days, and then I tend to forget to think about my actions. So sorry, and I hope you can laugh about it :)  
**


	20. Chapter 19

**Finally**

**

* * *

**_I finally stopped tripping on my youth_  
_I finally got lost inside of you_  
_I finally know that I needed to grow_  
_And finally my maze has been solved_

_Finally_  
_Now my destiny can begin_  
_Though it will have a different set_  
_Something strange and new is happening_

_Finally-Fergie_

* * *

"I still don't get it." Kate muttered softly. I couldn't suppress a smile any longer; that had been the sixth time she said that. Not that I could blame her, of course. It was confusing. Chase had willed his power to my unborn child. And if that wasn't confusing enough, Caleb was already wondering if my child would begin the new line. He said there was a possibility that my grandchild would get the power as well. After he had speculated about that for a while, I had finally shut up him up with the words 'I'm sixteen, I'm way too young to think about grandchildren!'. He hadn't been able to deny that point, so he had dropped the subject.

It had been weird when I got back. Beside the fact that everyone was surprised to hear me speak again, none of them really knew how to speak to me. Well, no one beside Lizzie, but she had magically disappeared a while back.

Tyler had muttered something like 'glad your save' to me, before starting his attempts of avoiding me. Though I didn't know what his problem was, I really didn't feel like dealing with it at the moment. I had decided that I deserved a bit of fun before the whole drama would begin again. Though the drama wasn't gone. Not really.

Pogue had just kicked a police officer out of the door, in a polite way of course, after he informed us of the death of Aaron, Bordy, Ryan and both my parents. There was no way that was a coincidence. The problem was that I didn't really know whether I should be grateful for what Chase had done to them, or hate him. He had killed them in cold blood. Even though I knew he did it for me, to protect me, It still seemed… well, harsh doesn't sound like the right word, but I can't think of anything better. Aaron, Bordy and Ryan had been in prison, were they would be for a very long time, so there had not been a real reason to kill them. The same went for my parents.

The problem was I couldn't really hate him for it. All five of them had been monsters in my eyes, and there was no way I would ever forgive him. So the only reason I had to be mad at Chase for killing them, was because this would cause a lot of problems for us. Though it was clear for the police we couldn't have anything to do with it, since we hadn't had any contact with them for a long while, there would still be some people to make the connection. People like Mandy Philips.

But I decided to put those problems aside for now. I'd deal with them when they came up. Now, I just really needed to find Lizzie. I needed to talk to someone about something other than the whole Chase-thing.

I opened the door to the kitchen, pretty sure that's were she would be. When I looked in the room, my eyes widened.

"What the hell?" I exclaimed, causing the two persons inside to quickly jump apart. And I couldn't help it anymore. I started to laugh.

* * *

Lizzie and Reid looked at each other, both blushing slightly. It was the first time I actually saw Reid embarrassed, which only made it funnier for me.

"Don't mind me." I managed to say between my laughs. "I'm just getting a drink." Lizzie gave Reid a small shove towards the door, and he quickly walked back towards the living room, muttering something about talking to Pogue. Lizzie looked at me, still blushing slightly. I couldn't keep the huge smile of my face.

"Congratulations." I told her teasingly. That only made her blush harder.

"I swear, that was the first…." I gave a short laugh again while putting my hands into the air.

"Alright, alright. I believe you!" When I looked at her, I could see the remorse in her eyes, which confused me. I frowned. "What?" I asked her. "Something wrong?" She frowned, looking at me curiously.

"You're not mad?" I didn't bother asking my question out loud, and instead simply raised my eyebrow. She stared at me, her eyes wide.

"I just kissed the boy that's practically your brother, and your not mad?" She asked, full of unbelief. My eyes widened when I finally saw her problem. Now I started to think about it, it could cause some problems. Then I simply shrugged.

"Don't see the problem. As long as I can still hang out with you two without watching you make out every few seconds, of course." Lizzie looked at me for a bit longer, searching the truth in my words. Then she started to laugh, and practically jumped me when she moved to hug me. I laughed while answering the hug.

"This is so awesome!" Lizzie exclaimed in a high-pitched voice, straight into my ear. I winced, but didn't want to pull her out of her happy place. "Then we really are practical sister!" I pulled away from her, pretending to look offended.

"Weren't we already?" I asked, after which I started to pout. Lizzie laughed, and slapped my arm. I laughed along, and then started with business.

"Come on, spill. I want to know _everything_." I stretched 'everything', while pulling her towards the kitchen table. We both sat down, and she started to talk.

"Alright. Well, the first time I met Reid, I wasn't really in boy-hunting-mode, but remember when he took you to Boston?" I lifted my eyebrow, indicating how stupid that question was to me. Lizzie quickly continued. "Well, I thought it was really sweet what he did, and admit it… HE"S FREAKING HOT!" Again, I couldn't suppress my laughter, though I couldn't deny her words. Lizzie grinned happily, and then continued. "And then, during the whole court thing, we sort of started talking, about you mostly." I rolled my eyes, hating the thought of everyone talking about me.

"All good things, I hope?" Lizzie laughed and quickly nodded.

"Like there's anything else to say about you." She reconsidered that for a second, and then added. "Well, beside your taste in boys of course." I playfully glared at her, though I couldn't deny it. Chase had been a big mistake.

"Anyway, I told Reid how worried I was about you and he started comforting me. The same happened during the whole Chase thingy." Again, I rolled my eyes. What had happened with Chase defiantly deserved more then 'thingy'. It was more 'an incident'. Lizzie ignored me. "And then just now, he followed me to the kitchen, and he kissed me and then you entered. So that's about it." I frowned, thoughtfully tapping my chin.

"Has he asked you out yet?" Lizzie's face fell, and she shook her head. I sighed disappointed.

"Too bad. I need a reason to go shopping. Anyway, I'm gonna have a talk with Reid." Lizzie's eyes widened, and she grabbed my hand before I had the chance to walk out of the kitchen.

"Please don't tell anyone yet." She begged me. "I mean, I don't even know what's going on yet!" I pretended to think about it for a second, just to tease her. But when I looked at her desperate, begging face again, I couldn't help but laugh.

"Of course not." And I walked out of the kitchen.

I dropped down beside Reid on the couch. He looked me in the eyes, probably searching for how I felt about him and Lizzie. I erased every bit of emotion off of my face. After all, it wasn't fair to tease just one of them.

"Come on." I whispered softly to him, before walking out of the room, towards my room. Reid quickly ran after me, yielding some curious looks from the others.

In my room, we both sat down on my bed. For a second, we were both quiet, while I thought about my words. I didn't want to hurt him, so I had to bring this carefully.

"Do you like Lizzie?" I asked him, while turning to face him. I wanted to look him straight in the eyes as he answered my question.

Reid didn't avoid my gaze as he answered in one, simple word. "Yes." I narrowed my eyes, searching his for any sign that would prove he lied. I didn't find any, so I specified my question.

"The dating, maybe-will-be-love sort of like?" This time Reid didn't answer out loud. Instead he just nodded. And I knew he spoke the truth. I started to grin.

"Good. Then go downstairs and ask her out." I commanded him, before jumping up from the bed and going back downstairs, leaving a bemused Reid behind. I grinned to myself while I walked downstairs, happy with the idea of two of my best friends becoming a couple. I knew they'd be perfect together: Reid as the bad-boy, pretending not to care about anything beside a good fight, but willing to kill anyone who would even think about hurting someone he loved, and Lizzie, funny, happy, not really thinking about the consequences of things and ready to defend everyone and everything she loved.

When I entered the room, I gave Lizzie a quick wink, before walking to the kitchen. I really needed a drink.

* * *

"I so hate this movie." I muttered softly. Lizzie laughed, while Kate and Sarah nodded in agreement. Reid rolled his eyes while turning to me.

"You've never even seen it!" He objected loudly, causing Lizzie to slap him on the head.

"Shut it. I'm trying to enjoy the movie." I refused to back out of the discussion that easily.

"The name's ' The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'. How hard can it be to guess what it is about?" I exclaimed loudly. This time, everybody laughed, but I ignored them, glaring at Lizzie instead. After all, this was all her fault.

When Kate had suggested a movie night, everyone had agreed. Of course we, meaning Kate, Sarah and I, had all thought we'd get some chick-flick. It was the logical thing: We would all vote, where it would turn out in a tie. Then, Kate, Sarah and Lizzie would start pouting until they got it their way. When we finally found out that Lizzie hated chick-flicks, and loved horror movies, all was already lost. So now we were all doomed to watch a lot of people die a painful, bloody death.

Kate and Sarah had soon acquiesced in their faith, knowing that would give them a reason to curl up with their boyfriends. So that meant double torture for me: Watching a scary movie, and seeing everybody happy with someone else, while I was alone. Well, technically: while Tyler and I were alone, but he wasn't of much help at the moment. Right now, he was sitting at the other end of the couch, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"Why do you hate scary movies so bad?" Lizzie asked amused. "I mean, their hilarious!" Now everybody was staring at her like she had just grown a second head. She answered their gazes with an innocent smile. "What? They are! I mean, just the blood that spats around everywhere!" I still didn't get what was so funny about that, and apparently neither did the others. But Lizzie, apparently not in the mood to explain herself, turned the attention back to me by looking at me with questioning eyes. I grumbled softly and then shook my head.

"Their just gross." I muttered softly, which seemed to be enough explanation for everybody. They turned their eyes back to the TV screen, and Pogue pressed play. I groaned softly and grabbed a pillow, holding it before my face.

There were a lot of reasons for people to hate horror movies. Most of them consisted of a story about how they had accidently seen one when they were very young. In my case, it was even simpler: I just despised them, considering them to be the 'modern gladiator fights'. Seriously, why would you watch people die for your enjoyment? It was just… screwed-up.

I tried to keep the pillow in front of my face the entire movie. I don't know if you've ever tried it, but trust me: It's hard. The screams, I could handle, even though they did freak me out. But every time that scary music started to play, you know, the one that announces someone is going to die soon, I couldn't stop myself from peaking around my fluffy shield. And of course, just when I couldn't control my curiosity any longer, the person was murdered. Meaning that I missed the entire movie, except for the really gory parts.

And hearing Kate and Sarah's screams, and Lizzie's laughs, didn't really help either. So needless to say, when I felt someone touching my shoulder, I nearly fell of the couch. Causing Lizzie to laugh even louder, of course. It's a mystery how she managed to see the movie, and still watch my idiotic moves.

"Sorry." Tyler muttered softly in my ear, causing me to shiver. A small blush started to appear on my face. My eyes caught Lizzie's. She was grinning broadly at me, and when she saw me looking at her, her eyebrows started to move up and down suggestively. Yep, Reid and she really did fit together perfectly. My blush started to spread, and before I could embarrass myself more, I hit my face in Tyler's chest. Didn't really help with the blush, but did help with a few other things. No one would be able to see my blush, I didn't have to see the movie, and I defiantly felt happier than before.

"It really isn't that scary." Tyler muttered softly in my ear. His breath tickled my ear and I shivered again. I had once read somewhere that when you fall in love, a chemical starts working in your brain. That chemical also worked when you were exited, or scared or something. In short, that article told people to take your girlfriend bungee-jumping for a date, because that would make sure the girl would love you even more. Apparently, scary movies also did the trick.

"Rachel?" Tyler's soft voice pulled me from my thoughts. "If you would actually watch the whole movie, instead of just the scary stuff, and tell yourself it isn't that scary, you might actually enjoy it a bit." At the moment, I could think of other ways to enjoy myself. Most of them included Tyler. Bad Rachel.

"I doubt it." I told him. I really, really, really, really hated horror movies. Even if they did give me a chance to lay against Tyler. Who was laughing at the moment. I pulled away from him and glared at him. He tried to contain his smile, but failed. I huffed softly and jumped up from the couch, walking to the kitchen. I knew everyone was looking after me, but I really couldn't care less at the moment. I was willing to take any chance to get away from the movie at the moment. And a drink sounded like a good one.

"Rachel?" I turned around, lifting my eyebrow in a silent question. Why was Tyler suddenly following me? "If you want, we can go upstairs and watch another movie there?" He suggested with a sweet smile. I felt my heart melting, and couldn't be angry at him any longer "The others say they don't mind." He quickly added, making me smile. He really took everything into account. And then I started feeling guilty. My friends had done everything in their power to make a nice, normal evening of it, and here I was ruining everything just because we didn't get to watch the movie I wanted to see. My eyes flew away from Tyler's face, down to the floor.

"No." I answered softly, with guilt clearly audible in my voice. "It's okay. Let's go." I felt Tyler's eyes on my face, but couldn't bring myself to look up at him. I really couldn't control my hormones at the moment.

_Stupid pregnancy. _

Tyler chuckled. My eyes immediately flew up, staring up at him in surprise. Yes, I know, I can't control myself, but I just needed to know why he was laughing. The corners of Tyler's mouth were turned up, forming a small, amused smile. His eyes were locked on me, with a small mocking glint in them.

"What?" I asked shyly, starting to feel self-conscious under his gaze. Tyler laughed again.

"Nothing." He answered, making me lift my eyebrows. "I just didn't realize just how much you hated horror movies." I blushed again, though I didn't completely understand why. I wanted to get mad at him for mocking me, but for some reason everything Tyler said only made me feel shy. Again, STUPID PREGNANCY!

"Guess that means I'll have to find another movie for Saturday." I stared at him, knowing I looked ridiculous with my mouth hanging open, but unable to close it.

"Sa..Saturday?" I finally managed to stutter. Tyler laughed again, and nodded.

"Yeah. You know, our date?" With that he left the kitchen, grinning to himself and leaving me frozen in surprise.

* * *

**Finally! Is there anyone else who was wondering when this would finally happen? If you want to know why Tyler suddenly completely changed his ways, review and I'll send you a small peak into his thoughts! So know just a few more chapter to go, and then I might write a sequel. That one might contain some lemon... Tell me what you think of it!  
**

**If you want to see the dress that Rachel wore in Chapter 18, check out my profile. **

**And yay for me: I won the second price in a poem competition! **

**PLEASE REVIEW! (pretty please?)  
**


	21. Chapter 20

**Night to remember**

* * *

_I never meant to start a war_  
_You know I never wanna hurt you_  
_Don't even know what we're fighting for_

_Why does love always feel like a battlefield_  
_A battlefield, a battlefield?_  
_Why does love always feel like a battlefield_  
_A battlefield, a battlefield?_

_Jordan Sparks-Battlefield_

* * *

It was Saturday. _The _Saturday. Kate, Sarah, Rachel and Lizzie had spent their entire day in the mall, while the boys were playing videogames, relieved because they hadn't been forced to join the girls. Now all four girls were standing in front of Kate's mirror, waiting for the boys to pick them up.

Kate and Pogue would go to a small restaurant in Boston, before going to the Dells to 'enjoy the scenery'. No one was innocent enough to fall for that excuse, but Kate still refused to change the description.

Caleb would take Sarah to see a play in Boston, but he had refused to say which play. Sarah had stated that she wasn't worried about it, that she wouldn't try to guess it, but none of her friends were convinced. Kate had even caught Sarah searching for plays on Google.

But Lizzie was the only one who really didn't have a clue what was going on. Reid had managed to keep everything hidden from her, telling her to 'just trust him'. Unfortunately for him, she had heard all the stories about his pranks from Tyler, Pogue and Caleb, so trusting him didn't go so well.

Rachel was pretty sure Tyler would take her to see a movie, but she still wasn't completely convinced. Tyler had changed completely in the past week, suddenly acting with a lot more self-esteem. There for, Rachel had found herself unable to predict his next move, which annoyed her to no end.

The bell rang, and the girls exchanged looks, wondering who should open the door. Lizzie quickly walked to the window, and grinned when she saw Tyler's hummer outside. She turned back to her friends.

"I'll open the door. Rachel, count to thirty before following me, alright?" Rachel lifted her eyebrows, not really understanding the whole rule about boys having to wait for girls. But she also knew there was no arguing with Lizzie, so she nodded. Lizzie sent her a huge smile, and then ran to the door, practically skipping down the stairs. Kate and Sarah extended amused grins, still unable to understand where Lizzie got all her energy from.

Rachel subconsciously stroke with her left hand over her stomach. When Chase had taken her on a date, she had already known what was going on between them, that they both liked each other. With Tyler she missed every part of knowledge, which made everything a lot scarier. Kate and Sarah exchanged knowing grins again, and then they both grabbed Rachel by her arms, pulling her towards the stairs.

"Go on, girl." Kate encouraged her. "Make an entrance."

"But don't fall down the stairs!" Sarah added quickly, with a playful grin on her face. Rachel simply glared at her two friends, and then descended the stairs.

Tyler sighed softly as he sat in the hummer, trying to gather all his courage to step out of the car and ring the bell.

Finally he opened the door and walked towards Kate's house, where the girls had decided to gather, since that was one of the few places they could completely avoid the boys.

Apparently it took some time for the girls to get the door, which didn't really help with his nervousness, but finally the door opened. Lizzie greeted him with a wide grin.

"Hey Ty." Tyler could her the amusement in her voice, and knew she knew how nervous he was. "Rachel's on her way. Oh, are those roses?" Tyler looked down at the flowers in his hand and heard Lizzie laugh again.

"Oh, there she is!" The girls exclamation immediately called Tyler's attention. His eyes flew towards the stairs, and he suddenly had trouble keeping his mouth close.

She was gorgeous.

Her long, curly, brown hair descended down her shoulders, almost reaching her middle. She wore a dark, skinny jeans, a black top with sparkles and black heals. Her bracelet and earrings were also black, but her purse was green. She looked perfect.

Her eyes met his and she blushed slightly. He grinned broadly.

"Hey." He greeted her, after which he silently cursed for such a lame greeting.

"Hey." She answered, in her soft, shy voice. Then she reached him, and the both stood in front of each other, feeling slightly uncomfortable.

'Flowers!' Lizzie mouthed to Tyler over Rachel's shoulder. He quickly raised his left hand, holding the flowers out to her. Not knowing what to say, he stuck to the basics.

"You look gorgeous." He told her softly, causing her to blush again.

"Thank you." She replied, while taking the flowers from him. "Uhm.. Let me put these in some water."

"I'll do it!" Lizzie quickly said, while jumping forward and pulling the roses out of Rachel's hands. "You guys go!"

For a second, Tyler hesitated about his next move. Then he extended his hand to her.

"Shall we?" She smiled shyly again, and took his hand. He leaded her to the car, opening the door for her and helping her get in.

The car ride was a bit awkward, since neither of them knew what to say. Tyler silently cursed himself again, and then turned to Rachel.

"What sort of music do you like?" He asked her, knowing it was a lame question, but not possessing the creativity to think of anything else. She thought about it for a second, before answering.

"Uhm, well all kind of music really. As long as the lyrics make sense, at least. You?" Tyler hesitated for a second, and then shrugged.

"Changes everyday, I guess. One day I listen to a song and can't stand it, the next day I hear it again and can't turn it off." The both laughed, and then Rachel asked a question.

"You know, you never told me what we were going to do." She thought about it for a second, and then added. "Or how Pogue reacted when you told him." Tyler laughed softly at that memory, remembering how he had said that he would tell her brother about the date.

"Strangely enough, he almost seemed okay with it. Though I think that Reid had already warned him this would soon." He winced when he realized his mistake. That was something he hadn't meant to say out loud. Rachel looked at him confused.

"Why?" Tyler bit his lip. For a second he hesitated about telling her, but then he decided that he couldn't do any harm.

"I've been sort of wanting to take you out since… well, the party at the Dells." Rachel gaped at him, clearly surprised by that confession. Then she started to blush again.

"Why didn't you?" She asked him softly. And then it was Tyler's turn to look confused. The two simply looked at each other, both trying to find the answers in the others eyes.

"Would you have said yes?" Tyler finally asked her, feeling his heartbeat increasing. Rachel nodded, while her blush grew. A grin started to grow on Tyler's face, and then he refocused his eyes on the road.

"I wish I had known that. I would've done this forever ago." They both laughed again, and after that the conversation continued smoothly.

This was heaven. There was simply no other way to describe it, the blissful feeling, the smile that couldn't be erased from her face, the feeling that there was no more sorrow in the world. Because how could there be pain, when everything felt so perfect?

Rachel softly hummed a song to herself and the baby. She couldn't remember the words, or even the name of the song, she just knew that it was perfect. Suddenly Lizzie jumped up, grabbed her hands and pulled her to the middle of Rachel's room. Both girls started to dance, laughing, unable to stop their ridiculous moves, even when their feet felt like they were burning. It reminded Rachel of the reason she and Lizzie had gotten so close: They were the complete opposite of each other. While Rachel liked to wait on the sideline, searching for the right moment to enter the stage, Lizzie just jumped forward without a second thought, creating the right moment. And she'd always drag Rachel along, pulling out the carefree side of the younger girl. They balanced each other.

They twirled around each other, forgetting all the dance lessons they had ever had, simply enjoying the lack of duties for a while. Tonight, they weren't dancing to show how good they were. They were dancing to prove they were alive. There was no music, no audience, nothing beside them. And they laughed.

The loud sound of the door slamming open interrupted their joy, causing both girls to stare at the crying girl who was now running inside. The mocha-skinned girl dropped down on her bed, sobbing into her pillow, that was now hiding her face from the rest of the world. Lizzie and Rachel exchanged a look, silently discussing what to do.

"Kate!" Sarah ran inside, dropping down on the bed beside her friend, and pulling her into her arms. Lizzie quickly closed the door, locking it. She knew from experience there weren't a lot of things that could make a girl cry like that. In this case, there was only one logical explanation for it: Boy trouble.

"What happened?" Rachel asked softly. Sarah looked up, hesitating before answering.

"She and Pogue got into a fight." Kate flew up, her face turning from desperate to furious in a second.

"He was flirting with our waitress! She even gave him his number, and he kept it!" Sarah looked at her friend, her eyes filled with pity. Lizzie's eyes flamed up, knowing exactly what she would do to a guy that would treat her like that. Rachel looked lost. Not only was this the first time someone else needed her help, instead of the other way around, but the fight also included her brother, which made it hard for her to pick a side. Her eyes darted through the room, searching for someone who could tell her what to do.

Downstairs all four girls could hear the screaming. Rachel winced, remembering enough fights to hate them. Apparently Pogue wasn't too happy about the ending of his date either. Rachel knew that Caleb, Reid and Tyler were there as well, probably trying to calm him down, but she still felt worried about him.

"I'm sure he didn't really think about, Kate." Sarah tried to calm her friend, ignoring the fight beneath them. Kate's temper flared up, and she jumped up of the bed, pacing through the room.

"Of course he didn't think about it! That's just the point! When you don't think about things, you do it the way you want to do it." Lizzie nodded thoughtfully.

"If you want, I could kick his ass for you." Rachel and Sarah could hardly suppress their smiles as they imagined the girl, who was barely 5,3 feet tall, fighting the 6 feet tall Pogue. But Kate only shook her head.

"No thanks, I'll do it myself." She hissed softly. A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts about revenge. Reid's head appeared in the door opening. He couldn't suppress a goofy grin as he looked at Lizzie, but that quickly disappeared when he saw Kate's puffy, furious eyes.

"Get out!" She yelled at him. He winced and then turned to Rachel.

"Could you please try to calm Pogue down? He just tossed the X-Box out of the window." In Reid's eyes, that probably was one of the unforgivable sins. Rachel's eyes flew from the door, which was closed now that Reid had fled away from Kate's glare, to Kate. Then she turned to Lizzie, searching for advice. Lizzie sighted softly and then nodded.

"Go, before he burns the house down. Somehow I don't think an angry warlock is very safe." Rachel sent Kate a quick apologizing look, and then ran out of the room, grateful for being spared of more angry Kate.

"Pogue!" Luckily for her, her brother immediately recognized her voice. Otherwise, she might have ended up with a television against her head. The boys eyes immediately turned worried.

"What? What did she say?" Rachel blinked for a second, not following the sudden mood swing.

"Why did you take the waitress' number?" She asked, avoiding the answer. She didn't think it would calm Pogue down if he knew that Kate was currently planning on ways to kill him. He put his hands into the air, sighing in agitation.

"What else was I supposed to do? I just didn't want to offend the girl."

"Any girl who's willing to hit on a boy when he's on a date with another girl, deserves to be offended." Reid entered the discussion. Rachel had to admit he had a point, though it didn't really help to calm Pogue down.

"I know!" He yelled at his friend. "I didn't think, alright! And Kate's blowing the whole thing way out of proportion!" Rachel walked forward, taking her brother by the arm.

"Pogue…" She tried to calm him down. "Why don't just go talk to her?"

"I highly doubt she's gonna want to talk to him right now." Five pair of eyes turned towards the door, where Lizzie stood, her furious eyes focused on Pogue. She walked through the room, and Rachel quickly walked towards Tyler, who put his arm around her shoulder. This was something she did not want to get between.

Lizzie's right hand flew through the air, hitting Pogue full on the face. Reid started to grin, but Rachel tossed him a glare before he could really burst out in laughter.

"I love that girl." The blond mumbled softly, not really addressing anyone. Tyler grinned softly.

"You'd better. Because this is probably nothing compared to what she'll do to you if you ever screw up." Reid's smile disappeared. Caleb, Rachel and Tyler grinned, before returning their attention to Pogue and Lizzie.

"You're an asshole! You take her on a date, and then you start flirting whit another girl? You're such a prick! What the fuck were you thinking?" Pogue tried to push the girl away from him, but quickly found out that was harder than he had originally thought. She kept avoiding his arms, before kicking or hitting him somewhere.

Rachel watched the whole scene, feeling divided.

"You think I should help him?" She asked Tyler softly. The boy thought about it, and then shook his head.

"Nah, leave him. Who knows, she might actually show him the light this way."

"What the fuck were you thinking?" Lizzie repeated in a loud screech. Finally Pogue managed to grab her arms.

"I wasn't thinking alright! It was just a stupid mistake. I wanted to throw the number away as soon as we were outside, but then Kate started the fight and…" He interrupted his own rant with a loud sight. "I'm an idiot." He muttered softly while releasing Lizzie. The girl took a few steps back, sizing Pogue up. Then she started to applaud, effectively dragging the attention of everyone in the room towards her.

"Well done. Now, go upstairs, tell her what an idiot you are, apologize and then burn the number." Then she turned to Rachel.

"You know, you still haven't told me what your date was like." For a second Rachel just looked at her friend in amazement. Then she burst out in laughter.

_Only Lizzie. _She thought.

"I love this movie." Rachel stated happily as the watch the credits of 'Valentines Day'.

"I love girls nights." Lizzie added with her trademark, carefree smile.

"I love you guys." Sarah continued the game.

"I love Pogue…" Kate whispered dreamily. "Hey!" Lizzie, Rachel and Sarah had all thrown their pillows to the girl. "That's not fair!" Lizzie sighed, quasi-weary.

"Maybe we should have left her alone with Pogue. It was a bad idea to keep them from having make-up-sex. Now she can't stop talking about him!" Rachel groaned, while grabbing her pillow back from Kate and covering her ears with it.

"Don't want to know!" She cried out, causing her three friends to laugh.

As the had agreed on the previous night, they were having some girl-time, meaning a slumber party with a lot of chick-flicks and popcorn. They all sat in Rachel's room, while the boys were downstairs having their own slumber party, although they refused to call it that.

"Have you and Tyler kissed yet?" Sarah suddenly asked Rachel, causing the younger girl to blush. Rachel shook her head.

"We're taking it slow." She answered shyly. Lizzie started to laugh.

"Don't listen, Sarah. That's just her way of saying both of them are too chicken to make the first move." This time Lizzie was the on was who was hit by the pillow. "You can't deny the truth!" The girl cried out. Instead of objecting it, Rachel simply tossed another pillow her way.

"Shut it, and start talking about your date." She commanded. Lizzie happily complied, sitting up straight.

"He took me for a picnic in the forest." She said dreamily. "Then we went swimming in the sea." The other girls exchanged looks. Sarah and Rachel both figured it was saver not to ask, but Kate thought otherwise.

"In what? You didn't bring a bathing suit!" It wasn't really a question, more of a search for affirmation. Lizzie's grin almost took in her entire face. Rachel groaned softly.

"You two are so much alike, I start to worry about the children you'll have." She muttered softly. Kate started to grin as well.

"Speaking about children, you did use protection right?" She asked teasingly. And then it was Lizzie's turn to throw a pillow. Sarah and Rachel dived out of the way to avoid the soft objects flying through the air, as Kate and Lizzie started a pillow fight.

"Ten bucks saying Reid will come through that door any minute now, hoping he'll see a pillow fight." Sarah said, grinning at Rachel. The younger girl started to laugh, infected with the others playfulness, and then shook her head.

"No way I'm betting against that." After that, she smashed Sarah with her pillow, and the real fight started.

_Defiantly a night to remember. _Rachel though with a smile.

* * *

**I hope you like the chapter. Again, review=preview! (PLEASE REVIEW! I'M BEGGING YOU) **


	22. Chapter 21

**When you've seen it all**

**

* * *

**

Time goes by fast. I still remember the first day in high school. Standing in front of the spooky, gray building, running around while desperately trying to be in time for your class… It seemed so far away now, like it was another life. Actually, it was.

That girl had been the shy, invisible Rachel Parry, no friends, no loving family, just a small, sad girl who was trying to live the life she hated. I no longer was that girl; I was the strong Rachel Parry, who could live past everything life threw at her. I had a brother who loved me, or three, to be exact. I had friends who would always be there for me. I had a boyfriend who would never give up on me. I was loved, wanted, happy. Life was worth living now. No, it was more than that: It was perfect. Because Brian Reid gave me the last part of happiness I could ask for. It was perfect. Except for my body, that felt way too big now, since the baby would probably be born in about a month.

Reid, Tyler, Lizzie and I would all go to New York. Tyler, Lizzie and I would go to the Steinhardt school of culture, education and human development. I know, it's just too long, but the school was great. Tyler, who turned out to be an amazing artist, would follow art classes, while Lizzie had chosen dance. I would follow the same classes as she would, only I'd skip the first year to take care of Brian. Then, I'd also follow singing lessons. Reid had decided he wanted to be a surgeon, joking that 'Grey's Anatomy had inspired him'. After years of telling everyone he would be a racer, this certainly came as a surprise.

Though we all knew the changes of actually breaking through in those branches were slim to none, we had decided it was all we wanted to do, so we'd just do it. Pogue had used a bit of the huge amount of money we had inherited to get Lizzie and I in, while Tyler's parents had done the same for him. Lizzie and I had already bought a small apartment there, big enough for just us two and Brian. Tyler and Reid would become our new neighbor. They had originally thought about moving in with us, but Pogue had threatened to kill Tyler for even suggesting it, so everyone had quickly dropped that idea.

Pogue wanted to start his own garage, so he'd study management at Stanford, where Kate would also go to study medicine. And Sarah and Caleb would both go to Harvard, as they had dreamed about since they could walk. Sarah would study psychology, as we all said was perfect for her, since she was the only one who could talk sense into Kate when she and Pogue got into another one of their pointless fights. Caleb wanted to become a lawyer.

I leaned against Tyler, who had his arm wrapped around my shoulder, and yawned. Yesterday, I had went to the graduation of my Boston friends, meaning Ian, who had stayed down a class, Lizzie, Simon, Mischa and Max. It had been around eleven when we got back home, and by then I was dead beat. Pregnancy really takes away your energy.

"Stay awake, love." Tyler whispered softly into my air. I moaned softly and then looked up at him with a small smile.

"Keep me awake." I commanded him playfully. He laughed softly and pressed his lips against mine. I lost myself in his touch, feeling like I had ascended to heaven. His tongue touched my lips, begging for entrance, and I was unable to deny it.

"Pogue's about to kill you, man." Reid warned his friend with a huge grin. We both pulled apart, neither one of us looking happy about the disturbance. But Reid was right; Pogue was looking towards Tyler with a murderous glare. Though they were brothers, and Pogue was okay with us dating, that still didn't take away all of the tension. There was still enough to make him cranky when he saw Tyler… 'cheering me up'.

"Time to sit down." Tyler muttered disappointed. I pouted, but knew he was right. In five minutes, our graduation would start, and now it was time to queue up. Meaning I had to let go of Tyler.

Pogue walked towards me, taking my hand in his and leading me towards my spot in the line, right behind him. Unfortunately for me, Mandy Philips' spot was right behind me, but she wasn't their yet. She was still talking to a few of her friends.

Luckily, there only were a few people between Tyler and I. Somehow, being near to him always made me feel better. I watched Kate moving between Kira and the kid behind her. She was standing right behind Tyler. When she caught my eyes, she waved at me. I smiled at her, thinking about the weirdness of our friendship again. I had hated her for the biggest part of my life, but we had befriended each other because her boyfriend had raped me. Admit it, that's weird.

Sarah was the last one, and she looked rather disappointed towards the front, where Caleb was standing. Reid waved towards us from his spot, somewhere between Caleb and us.

The music started playing, and we all started to move towards our assigned seats. Pogue helped me sit down in the annoying little chair. And then we all pretended to listen to the provost, blaring on about our future, about fame and success and wealth and that sort of crap. Sorry, I hate those sort of stories.

The names were being called, and Pogue and I applauded when it was Caleb's turn. When Reid entered the stage, the provost seemed rather happy to get rid of him. Reid made one last remark, that I couldn't hear unfortunately and that turned the provost's face a little bit red, and then he jumped of the stage with a loud scream. Lizzie ran forward to congratulate him, as Pogue and I shook our head, amused by his idiocy. Then it was our turn. Pogue helped me onto the stage, and then took his certificate. The provost wished him good luck, and then he jumped off again. I followed the same routine, although the provost spoke with a bit more passion during my 'good luck', and then Pogue helped me down again. I leaned into my brothers arms as I waited for my boyfriend.

I applauded when he accepted his certificate, and then waited for him to come to me. He jumped down and pulled me into his arms. For a second, we celebrated the new start, just the two of us. Then we had to pull away from each other to applaud for Kira. Kate and Sarah followed quickly after that, and then the moment Reid had been waiting for arrived.

"I present to you, the class of 2006!" The provost called out. We all threw our caps into the air. Reid's 'accidentally' hit the provost, and then it was all over. High school was the past.

* * *

For once, I didn't feel threatened by the crowd around me at all. But then again, it was a night of exceptions. For one, we weren't in Ipswich to celebrate our graduation, but in Boston. Just like the rest of Ipswich. Apparently, the police had decided to guard the Dells before we could throw a party there, so there only was one other place to go: Boston, where various dance crews and bands were battling each other. Lizzie even said there were talent scouts searching for new talent.

I laughed as I watched Simon trying to teach some dance moves to the boys. Lizzie was doing the same thing with the girls, only they had actually practiced before. My eyes found Tyler's, just as he fell down on his butt. My cola nearly streamed out of my mouth as I started laughing, so I quickly covered my mouth with my hand. Tyler grinned, and said something to his friends. Then he walked towards me.

I smiled up at him as he stood in front of me, and when he returned my smile, I had a hard time believing he actually was my boyfriend. He managed to convince me, though, when he leaned forward and pressed his lips against mine. It wasn't anything more than a peck, but it was enough to turn my world upside down.

"Love you." He whispered softly in my ear. My smile widened, almost covering my entire face. No matter how many times he said it, it made my heard beat so fast I swear it would work better than CPR.

"Love you too. Oh shit." Tyler lifted an eyebrow while following my eyes. Then he saw Will furiously motioning me to come towards him. That wouldn't be a problem, if it hadn't been for the fact he was standing on a stage. "That can't be good." I muttered softly. Tyler laughed as he grabbed my hand and started pulling me towards the stage. Will started to talk.

"In September last year, we had the honor to meet one of the most amazing people in this world. Not only was she a great dancer, but she also had a beautiful voice and unlike Ivy, she had a beautiful character as well. After I got to know her a bit better, I was impressed by her strength. This year was a nightmare for her, but she managed to live through it, and now, whenever someone asks about it, she can only tell us the good things. This song was written for her." I felt my eyes starting to water as Abe started to sing. Which he was surprisingly good at.

_She looked at me like the World was lost. _

_And when she smiled I couldn't find the joy. _

_The tears she tried to hide, appeared every time_

_And I couldn't help but wonder what went wrong. _

_She had the talent and the looks, _

_But the love was still away_

_And I couldn't understand_

_How things ended up that way. _

_I could feel her pain, but my actions were so useless. _

_And whatever I said, she screamed I'd never understand. _

_I loved the way she was, the way she made me laugh. _

_But the love she really needed wasn't from me. _

_Wherever she'd go, we'd all watch her_

_Save her from the pain, that we couldn't change_

_But no matter what we did, her fate wasn't in our hands. _

_And so we all feared she would be lost someday. _

_But pain exists only to be conquered _

_And finally she learned_

_She never was alone. _

_But pain exits only to forget_

_And finally someone came_

_To wipe the tears of her face. _

_I watched her smile be filled with joy_

_Like a child playing with her first toy. _

_I watched her laugh out loud, for the first time in her life_

_And I knew that from now she'd be fine!_

_But pain never fully fades away_

_And when you think free, it hits you again. _

_It flew out from no where, hitting her with full force_

_And once again, she fell down, hitting the ground. _

_And there she was, with no way out_

_All the hope gone, when only pain remains. _

_The shame and the memory would never fade away_

_And when she started bleeding, there was no return. _

_Her life was nearly lost, and with hers another_

_But someway she stood up again, fighting once again. _

_And she finally understood, she never was alone. _

_Wherever she would fall, someone would catch her every time. _

_But pain exists only to be conquered _

_And finally she learned_

_She never was alone. _

_But pain exits only to forget_

_And finally someone came_

_To wipe the tears of her face. _

_And so she learned to stand strong no matter what_

_And so she learned there always is a reason to fight. _

_I will never understand, not at full at least, _

_But I know now she'll never be alone. _

_She was just another broken girl_

_All alone in this world_

_But she knew she could conquer all_

_So that is what she did, every day. _

_She pushed her pain away, _

_Learned to embraced all the joy_

_And so her live developed,_

_in the fairytale it's now. _

_Hope goes in her footsteps_

_Life follows her around_

_Pain pulled back now, _

_And when it'll come again, she'll fight!_

_Cause pain exists only to be conquered _

_Something she'll tell herself every day_

_Cause pain exits only to forget_

_To leave the memory's that make us what we are. _

I felt Tyler's arms around me, managing to hold up me up while I felt my knees buckle. My eyes met Abe, and the tears in them said everything I wanted to say. Thank you. I love you. You're amazing. I'll miss you. He smiled back at me, telling me everything he wanted to say. Don't forget us. Call us. Don't give up. We all love you.

"And now, I'd like to call this girl on to this stage, to sing a song that she once called 'the soundtrack of her life'. Lady's and gentleman, here's Rachel Parry, with the song 'the last night' by Skillet. I wiped the tears from my eyes, and then took a few more steps towards the stage. Tyler, Will and some boy I didn't know managed to get me on the stage without to much trouble, and then I walked towards the microphone. I refused to look at the crowd at first, scared that my voice would hide away if I'd see all the people looking at me.

Will started to sing.

_(Will)_

_You come to me with scars on your wrist  
You tell me this will be the last night feeling like this_

And then it was my turn, and it felt like the fear just completely vanished. I could do this, I knew it. _  
_

_(Rachel) _

_I just came to say goodbye  
I didn't want you to see me cry, I'm fine  
But I know it's a lie._

_(together)__  
This is the last night you'll spend alone  
Look me in the eyes so I know you know  
I'm everywhere you want me to be.  
The last night you'll spend alone,  
I'll wrap you in my arms and I won't let go,  
I'm everything you need me to be.  
_

_(Will)  
Your parents say everything is your fault  
But they don't know you like I know you they don't know you at all  
_

_(Rachel)_

_I'm so sick of when they say  
It's just a phase, you'll be okay you're fine  
_

_(together)_

_But I know it's a lie.  
_

_(Together)  
This is the last night you'll spend alone  
Look me in the eyes so I know you know  
I'm everywhere you want me to be.  
The last night you'll spend alone,  
I'll wrap you in my arms and I won't let go,  
I'm everything you need me to be._

_The last night away from me  
_

_(Will)  
The night is so long when everything's wrong  
If you give me your hand I will help you hold on  
Tonight,  
Tonight.  
_

_(Together)  
This is the last night you'll spend alone  
Look me in the eyes so I know you know  
I'm everywhere you want me to be.  
The last night you'll spend alone,  
I'll wrap you in my arms and I won't let go,  
I'm everything you need me to be.  
_

_I won't let you say goodbye,  
I'll be your reason why._

_The last night away from me,  
Away from me._

That night was absolutely a night I'd never forget. I had to say goodbye to a friends, but I knew we'd meet again. Although everyone had told me that 'graduation is a time of endings and new beginnings', I didn't believe that. You can call me stubborn, but I just didn't believe this would be an end. Nothing ever truly ends, after all. Sure, things could change, but one day we'd be here again, to laugh again. To be happy again.

You see, I believe dreams can come true. I believe everything can turn out the way you want them to turn out. You just have to fight on, to keep believing. And accept the fact that there are people who want to help you. There always are. And if you can't see it, you'll just have to keep on looking, just a little bit harder. Like I had done.

I had been a nobody, a invisible creature who was just trying to live until the end. Now, I was a singer, a dancer, a soon-to-be-mother, a friend, a sister… a girlfriend. I had been hidden, but I had made my appearance.

* * *

_Dear Diary. _

_I'm the girl that has learned to search for love, rather than to accept it just isn't there. I'm the girl that has made her appearance, and that has now told you everything about her past. Maybe, someday I'll tell you about my present life, and, who knows, about how my future will be. I don't know just yet. All I know is that I've bled, cried, screamed and I still manage to live. I know I've learned what love truly means. What dreams can bring to a person. And how important hope can be. This will be the last chapter in this diary, since this will be the end of my story. You've met my life, now, you've gotten to know me. So this will be the end of this tale, but not the end of this life. _

_Farewell or see you later. Anyway, thanks for hearing me out. _

_Rachel Simms-Parry._

_

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_

**And finally, the end of this story... and the beginning of the next. That one will be mostly about Rachel and Tyler's relationship, so lots of jealousy, fights, and make-up/out-scenes. I'm not sure when that one will be up, so keep your eyes open! **

**Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter, and reviewing would be nice. The fact that only one person reviewed for my last chapter sorta depressed me (sob, sob). I would really like it if I'd reach the seventies, so if I do, I'll update one more chapter: A song I've written during the begin of this story. so please, review?  
**


	23. chapter 23

**For the people who haven't seen it yet: I'm working on the sequel of 'A Hidden Appearance', it's called 'Spotlights'. Honestly, it really isn't that good, but I'm hoping it'll get better. Unfortunately, I'm not sure what to do with that story just yet, so in the mean time I'm going to work on another story as well. Underneath this, there are parts/information about four stories. The first three are about the Covenant, the last one is about Supernatural. Please tell me which one you want to read more about. You can vote on my profile, or, in case you don't have a profile yet, just sent a review. Of course new ideas for stories are welcome as well. Just telling me I'm a crappy writer is alright as well, but not as much appreciated :)  
**

**Also, if there's something wrong with these stories, please tell me. Ideas for Spotlights are welcome as well!  
**

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**Alternative 'A hidden Appearance' (No real title yet)  
**

**pairing: **

**Rachel/unknown (OC or Tyler)  
**

**Caleb/Sarah**

**Pogue/Kate**

**Rating: M**

* * *

Sometimes Rachel wondered if there was a point of her life. She had no dreams, at least no realistic ones, no purpose, no people to live for. She listened as the people around her laugh at another one of Reid's jokes. The blond boy, one of her brother's closest friends, seemed to enjoy making people laugh, even more if it annoyed the teacher as well. Again, he seemed to have reached his goal. Rachel tried to pay attention to the man in front of the classroom who was desperately trying to get everyone out of the vacation-mood and back into school mode. So far, it didn't go so well, although he was definitely making progress.

English never had been Rachel's favorite subject, not in the least, because it was one of the few classes her and her brother shared. It wasn't that she hated her brother, she thought. It was because _he _hated _her_.

Pogue Parry was one of the most popular kids in school. He and his three friends, Caleb Danvers, Reid Garwin and Tyler Simms, were the 'Sons of Ipswich', the descendants of the five men that had founded Ipswich back in the seventeenth century, seemed to share the place on the top of the food chain. Everyone wanted to be friends with them, to talk and joke with them. Every girl dreamed about them. And to everyone Rachel was nothing more than Pogue Parry's little sister, if they even noticed her existence.

In the past, there had been people who had tried to use her to get close to the sons, but it hadn't taken them long to realize their mistake. To Pogue, Rachel wasn't his little sister. She hadn't been in a long time. She was just the girl who happened to live in the same house as him, who cooked when his parents were out and who occasionally helped him with his homework, or did his homework for him, when Caleb was too busy for tutoring. Befriending her would take you further from the sons rather than closer. And so, everyone of her 'friends' had dropped her as soon as they figured that out.

She still remembered back when she was young how they used to play. Before Caleb and the others came into view, before he became a 'son', they were siblings. They played hide and seek and all sort of games Pogue used to come up with. He was good at that, always keeping her entertained. She had never been bored back then. Now she was so bored she hardly did anything beside schoolwork. Of course, she had tried, a long time ago. Her brother had started ignoring her when he turned thirteen, but the real trouble hadn't started until high school where people had soon learned to stay away from her if they wanted to stand a chance with the sons.

Sometimes Rachel wondered what it was that made people fall down at their feet. Even Reid, who acted like a man-whore, sleeping with almost everyone he wanted and who had made it clear various times that he didn't care about any body's feelings except for his own, was still treated like royalty. Alright, Rachel couldn't deny it, he was handsome, but he was a jerk. There was nothing in the way he acted that made him any different from Aaron Abbott, yet the latter was the school's jerk while Reid was one of the most wanted singles. It just didn't make any sense.

Anyway, Rachel had tried to make friends. She had gone to some parties, talked to people and did everything in her power to catch someone's attention, in a positive way at least. But it just didn't seem to matter, so she had given up and accepted her invisibility. And so here she was, sitting in the back of the classroom, scared about the future. It was her senior year, the last year of high school. This year she had to pick a college, while she still didn't have a clue what she wanted to do in life. She didn't even know if her parents were going to pay for it or if they would just kick her out of the house as soon as she turned eighteen. Well, probably not the latter. They were one of the richest families in Massachusetts, and they had kept up appearances. Kicking their daughter out of the house might cause some problems for them.

The bell rang, and Rachel grabbed her stuff joining the line of students on their way to their next class.

The Spencer Academy was a school for the rich ones, something Rachel wouldn't complain about. Sometimes a small voice in her head would ask her if she really thought it was fair, building a school with an indoor swimming pool and recording studio while there were people starving somewhere, but it wasn't like she could change anything about that. She was only seventeen after all, so she had decided to just let it go.

The music department of the Spencer Academy had its own building. There were three classrooms, two record studios and a 'music-room', filled with various instruments. Rachel didn't do much with the instruments. Although she could play a few standard tunes on the piano, she wasn't very good with instruments. Singing, however, was another story.

Miss Anderson, the teacher, gave Rachel a small wave and then pointed to one of the groups in the corner. Rachel nodded in understanding and walked to the group. This was Ms. Anderson's usual way of teaching; she'd divide the more experiences students into groups and let them go their own way, as long as they'd be ready to perform three songs at the end of the semester. She'd teach the other students, the new ones or the ones who really didn't have any talent, a few things. How to stand when you sing, how to read notes, that sort of thing. Of course they had some theory to learn, but Ms. Anderson was convinced they could learn that by their selves, since it was just a matter of reading the textbook once in a while. Most students were very content with that method. In her freshman year, Rachel had a teacher, Mr. Brook, who spent all their time reading from the textbook. Most people had fallen asleep during those lessons.

"Hey Rachel." Tom, a nice junior, greeted her. Rachel remembered she wasn't as invisible as she had told herself before. She had the tendency to forget that after spending almost an entire vacation moping in her room. In her music class and her dance lessons after school, she was acknowledged.

Rachel looked around the group. Tom was the guitarist and the only junior of the group, Macy played the piano and Andrew drummed. She realized, with some pride, she was put into the best group of the class. Ms. Anderson always tried to put people with people of their own level, saying it was more challenging that way. She graded people by looking at their progress rather than their music, another one of the reasons everyone liked her.

"Do you think this is everyone?" Macy asked curiously. Andrew looked at a list in his hands and shook his head.

"No, Tyler is supposed to join us." Rachel groaned softly. Just her luck. She didn't doubt for one second it would be Tyler Simms. If it had been another Tyler, his last name would've been said as well.

Macy looked rather happy with that news. Rachel didn't need to ask why. Most girls were happy when a son was near. Rachel tried to think of different routes to escape. She could still swap classes, right? Or she could just pretend to be sick for the rest of the year… The door wasn't too far either.

"Hey, am I late?" Damn, too late.

"Hey Tyler." Andrew greeted him. "And no, you're just in time. Does anybody have any ideas for songs?" Rachel saw Tyler's eyes flickering her way and quickly looked away trying to focus her attention on Tom, who was searching for some songs on his phone.

"Nickelback is cool." He suggested. Andrew's eyes lit up. Rachel remembered he had played 'savin' me' last year. Everybody knew he was a fan of Nickelback.

"Sounds good." Macy agrees. "I love 'far away'. Can we play that one?" Andrew turned to look at Tyler.

"You okay with that?" Tyler nodded. "Rachel?" For a second, Rachel felt her heart flutter. She hadn't expected Andrew to ask her too.

"Sure." She answered quickly.

They spent the rest of the time searching for songs, listening to them, and writing the notes down. Luckily, the four that played the instruments could play a song after hearing it once, and lyrics were easy to find, so that didn't cause any problems. After some discussion, they choose 'Broken' by Seether and Amy Lee and 'I do not hook up' by Kelly Clarkson. Broken was a duet, so Tyler would sing there as well.

"One more thing." Andrew said, a few minutes before the bell. "In the last period, we have to perform a song we wrote ourselves. I suggest we all start working on that one as soon as possible." Tom smiled sheepishly.

"Agreed. Last year we couldn't come up with a song until about two days before the performance." Rachel couldn't suppress a grin. That did sound familiar. She looked back down at the pages with lyrics in her hand. Then the bell rang. Rachel put the papers in her schoolbag and walked out of the classroom, as fast as possible without actually running.

"Rachel! Rachel! Wait up!" When Rachel heard the voice calling her name, she stopped, simply because she was surprised anyone called for her. By the time she recognized the voice and started walking again, Tyler had caught up with her. He grabbed her arm and pulled, turning her around. He was smiling looking… _happy. _

"Uhm… hi?" Rachel asked carefully, wondering why he would ever come after her. In the five years he had been friends with her brother, she couldn't remember ever talking to him. Alright, maybe they had exchanged a few words, like 'hello, how are you?', simply to be polite. But they had never actually _talked_.

"Hey. You were gone pretty fast." Rachel simply shrugged. Tyler waited a few seconds to see if she'd say anything to explain herself, but when it was clear she wouldn't, he continued. "It's been awhile since I last sung, so I was wondering if you'd like to practice someday." He gave her a small smile. "I'd rather not screw it up in front of everybody."

Rachel hesitated. She really didn't feel like spending time with Tyler when it wasn't absolutely necessary and if she did, it probably wouldn't take long for the gossip to spread. On the other hand, it wasn't as if Tyler had actually ever done something to hurt her. Alright, he didn't talk to her much, but when he did he was always nice. She sighed softly.

"Fine. When?" Tyler hesitated.

"Uhm… how about this afternoon? Right after school at your house?"

"Sure." Rachel muttered, eager to end the conversation as soon as possible. "See you there." She tried to walk away, but Tyler stopped her by grabbing her arm again. Rachel tried to suppress a groan as she turned around.

"What?" She asked, slightly more agitated than she had intended. Tyler clearly wasn't used to people speaking to him like that.

"I… I just wondered if you'd like to sit with us at lunch." Rachel pulled her arm out of his grip.

"No thanks." She disappeared before he could stop her again. Tyler stared after her in confusion, wondering how two siblings could be so different.

"Hey, baby boy!" Tyler groaned as he heard his nickname again.

"I told you not to call me that, Reid." He snapped at his friend. Then he continued, in a friendlier voice. "Did you know Rachel sung?" Reid lifted an eyebrow.

"Rachel who?" Tyler stared at him in unbelief.

"Rachel Parry. You know, as in 'Pogue's little sister'?"

"Oh, she! She sings?" Tyler rolled his eyes, taking that as a 'no'.

"Yeah. Andrew says she amazing." Reid frowned and then shrugged.

"Huh. Good for her. I wonder what's for lunch." Tyler rolled his eyes and then followed Reid to the cafeteria.

Rachel had two hobbies: Singing and dancing. Singing had proven to be a challenge this year now that Tyler had joined the 'band', but she had sworn to herself that she wasn't going to let Tyler ruin it for her. But now that the final bell had rung, that didn't matter anymore. It was time for her second hobby.

As she walked into the gym she looked around wondering who else had signed up for dancing. There were about fifteen students, all waiting for the teacher to arrive. Rachel knew most of them, but there was one girl she hadn't seen before. This girl didn't seem to fit in with the rest, but not in a bad way. She was pretty enough, with blond hair and a body most girls would kill for. But Rachel could quickly see why the other girls seemed to avoid her: She was too real. Most girls in Spencer were tanned because they spent their entire afternoon in the sun bed. They were thin and had perfect faces because they had plastic surgery at least once a year, and their hair was blond because they dyed it. Especially the dance- and cheerleading group seemed to be filled with these girls for some reason. This girl was too real to fit in with the rest.

Rachel took her eyes of the girl and walked to the grandstand. She made sure to take a chair that wasn't too close to the others, to avoid their teasing. Although Rachel knew she was good, it wasn't enough for people to like her. In fact, it seemed to be the opposite: It made people jealous, so Rachel had soon learned to avoid the other girls.

"Uhm… Hey." Rachel looked up at the girl in front of her and recognized her as the new girl.

"Hi." She replied. The girl seemed to take that as an invite to sit down.

"I'm Sarah Wenham." She introduced herself.

"Rachel Parry. Are you new here?" Sarah's eyes lit up and then she nodded.

"Yeah, I transferred from Boston public. Are you by any chance family of Pogue Parry?" The fact that she said the last name of one of the sons proved just how new she was. Anyone with a little bit experience knew everyone would know who she or he was talking about by just saying the first name.

"He's my brother." Rachel said, trying not to make her voice sound to cold. After all, it wasn't Sarah's fault she and her brother didn't get along. Sarah looked surprised.

"Really? I didn't know he had a sister." Rachel shrugged and watched the teacher come in, carrying a couple CD's .

"Well, he doesn't really like me, so he mostly just tries to forget about me." She replied without really thinking about her words. Normally, she'd try to avoid saying things like this because it would most likely be the cause of a lot of gossip.

"What do you mean 'he doesn't really like you'?" Sarah asked confused.

"He hates me." Rachel simply replied while jumping up from the stand. The lesson started.

* * *

**Unknown**

**She is just the daughter of his father. She doesn't want to know him, or his family, he doesn't want to know her. But as it turns out, that's harder then expected when you are forced to live in the same house. And just to make it worse, his worst enemy tries to use her against him. **

**Reid/OC**

**Aaron/OC**

**Caleb/Sarah**

**Pogue/Kate**

**(these last two might change, there are times when I really hate Kate and Sarah.)**

**Rating: T/M  
**

* * *

"Hey Abbott. You look happy today. What happened? Did you finally realize that Kira is cheating on you?" Aaron gritted his teeth, knowing he would get kicked out the swim team if he would start a fight during training.

"Kira can't cheat on me if there's nothing between us. But how about Tyler? Has your lover finally figured what you're doing when you're not with him?" Personally, he was quite content with that comeback. That feeling only grew when there was no response.

"Garwin! Abbott! Get your asses in the pool! NOW!" Aaron cursed when he realized that he had missed the previous warning. He and Garwin quickly took their places, waiting for the signal. Then all the swimmers dived in, swimming as fast as they could.

Aaron closed his eyes as he felt himself flying through the water. The rush of the game. He was fast, he knew that, but there were more fast swimmers. And, reluctantly, he had to admit Garwin was one of them.

He touched the wall and started the last length, not wasting any time by checking how far the others were. Instead he just pushed all his strength into his movements. He knew he was flying through the water, and he couldn't suppress a grin. He really loved swimming. He touched the wall, panting as he looked around him to search for his teammates.

He was the first.

The coach pulled him out of the water, patting him on the back before telling him his time. Aaron started to grin. As he had predicted before the training started, swimming had helped him to feel better. He watched as the others climbed out of the pool. Reid was clearly angry about loosing, even though there barely was a difference between his time and Aaron's. Again, Aaron couldn't suppress a grin. Not that he really tried. After looking at Reid for a second, with a huge smirk on his face, just to rub his conquest in the blonds' face, he turned his back to the pool and walked away. He wanted to get rid of that chlorine-smell around him.

* * *

_"It was a mistake, alright? How many times do I have to say I'm sorry?" Aaron looked up from his schoolwork when he heard the yells coming from downstairs. What were his parents talking about? He quickly jumped us and rushed downstairs, anxious to find out. It wasn't unusual for his parents to be fighting, but they usually didn't scream that loud, wanting to keep it hidden from 'the kids'. _

_ "Mom? Dad? Something wrong?" Simon, Aaron's older brother by two years asked with a frown on his face. Their father, Matthew, looked slightly startled. He hadn't realized that they had been that loud. _

_ "Now, Simon, it's nothing." He quickly tried to reassure his children. Their mother, Anna, huffed. _

_ "I'm sure it's nothing to suddenly find out that my husband for nearly twenty-five years has had a relationship with another woman!" Simon and Aaron stared at their father, full of unbelief._

_ "Dad?" Aaron asked after a minute of complete silence. Doubt filled his voice. "Dad? Is that true?" Matthew hesitated for a second, trying to avoid the glare from his wife and the hurt looks of his children. _

_ "It's complicated." He finally whispered, so soft that Simon and Aaron could barely hear it. "but yes, in some way, it is true." Aaron shared a look with his brother. _

_ "What do you mean, in some way?" Simon's voice became harder and Matthew could hear the anger in it. Matthew looked at his wife, searching for support, but she simply looked away. Then she walked out of the room. Matthew sighed softly and then motioned his children to sit on the couch. Aaron and Simon looked at each other again, silently discussing what to do. Then they walked forward and sat down, side by side. Their father took place in front of them. _

_ "It happened about eighteen years ago. Aaron, you were just a baby. About three months or so. Your mom and I got into a fight, and she left. Took you with her. There never was a divorce, but to me it felt like one. And I just couldn't cope. So I tried to work as hard as I could. Finally, one of my colleagues came to me and asked me if I was alright. It was late, everyone else had already gone home. And I guess, I just broke. I started crying, and she supported me." _

_ Simon huffed silently, and Matthew send his children an apologizing look before continuing his story. _

_ "She took me out for dinner to talk to me, and I agreed. After that, we agreed to meet again. And then… we'll, you can guess that part. After a few months, your mom came back again, giving me another chance. I broke things of with Cindy, but never told Anna about her." _

_ "So why now?" Aaron asked gruffly. His father looked down at the floor, and Aaron suddenly realized that the message would get worse. Way worse. _

_ "She died in a car accident a few days ago. Leaving her daughter behind. She's almost seventeen." It didn't take the two children long to do the math._

_ "You sure?" Aaron asked with a whisper. This was just too much to take. He had a sister. His father looked wretched. _

_ "They did a test." His answer was even softer then the question. Simon jumped up without another word, running upstairs. Aaron hesitated for a second before following his brother._

* * *

And the last, of which I only have a small idea: (which isn't a very original idea, or anything.)

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_When Reid was fifteen, he made a girl think he loved her, just to get her to sleep with him. She moved away, but now she's back: And she isn't alone. Does she speak the truth when telling him he's her little brother, or does the covenant have a new generation? And if they do, how will they convince the girl to let them help her with her witchy son?_

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**_Hidden in the dark_**

**No known pairings. Might change. **

**Rating: M**

**Summary: There are things hidden in the dark, things you never want to know about. But she was forced in this life, leaving her no choice as to what she wanted. And as time passes, she only learns that she truly is a puppet of faith.**

* * *

Tom sat on the couch as they watched their third movie, Mission Impossible, again Tom's choice. He had one arm around Maria's shoulder, and she leaned against him. Suddenly he heard a soft cry.

He quickly turned to Maria, and realized she was asleep. He carefully lifted her up and carried her to her bed. She cried again, this time a bit harder.

"Please…" She whispered. "Don't… No! AHH" She screamed out in pain. Tom sat down beside her.

"Shhh." He tried to sooth her. "It's okay. You're save now." At that moment, Tom felt a gust of wind, and he turned around.

His eyes found the open window, that had been closed before. And then he saw it.

The Shtriga.

"Maria! Wake up!" He quickly screamed, causing Maria to jump out of the bed. Tom stepped in front of her, as his father had taught him. Behind him, Maria grabbed her cell-phone and she started to call her father. She laid it on the bed, without saying anything or hanging up. She knew her dad would get the message.

Tom pulled out his gun, though he knew it was useless. Bullets couldn't harm the monster, unless he was feeding of someone.

Something Tom wasn't about to let happen.

Behind him he heard the sound of someone taking a gun of its safety, and he thanked whatever god existed for not giving him some weak damsel in distress.

He pointed his gun to the Shtriga, who was still just standing in front of them, waiting for them to make the first move.

Tom nor Maria did, both realizing they should try to win as much time as they could. The cavalry was on his way.

And then it flew forward. Tom started to shoot, as did Maria, but it was pointless. Both were swept aside. Tom hit the right wall with a loud bang and fell unconscious on the ground.

Maria hit the left wall, but she wasn't as lucky as Tom. She remained conscious, and was all to aware of the pain in her leg, that was laying in an unusual position underneath her.

She saw the Shtriga come closer, and she started to search for her gun. Finally she located it.

At the other end of the room.

The Shtriga bowed over her and Maria screamed, before gasping as the monster pulled away her life-force.


End file.
